One Step At A Time
by J. Kylie
Summary: "Can miles truly separate you from your other half... If you want to be with someone you love, aren't you already there?" Steve & Catherine from the beginning, the missing moments that we never got to see. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Hawaii 5-0 **

**Chasing After You**

**8 April 2014**

**Author's Note: I loved watching Hawaii 5-O reruns with my father as a child and while growing up. Now, when I heard there was a revive of the original series, I got excited and literally looked up the information on the revival. Alex O'Loughlin was the best actor to play Steve McGarrett. McGarrett is such a character, and he was my dad's favorite action hero. So, here we are, four years into 5'0, and I absolutely love it! I'm kind of bummed out that Michelle Borth will not returning to Season 5, I really hope they give her character a nice exit; if they don't kill her off, I'd like her to return as a guest star and reprise her role in the show's future.**

**Steve and Catherine are really one of my favorite OTP's, I loved them ever since they first showed her character in season one. Steve McGarrett definitely deserves a love interest, and Catherine was the best one for him. Even though we didn't see their relationship progress more in the years, they definitely grew as a couple and developed character's strength. Like I said, I hope Michelle Borth will agree to come back as a guest in maybe the last two season's of the show. I'd like to see more of her and what she had become without Steve beside her. **

**Now with this story, it's completely A/U. I will borrow some ideas from the show itself, and you will read and see how I incorporate the actual show's plot into this story. This will tag from Catherine and Steve's story at Anapolis Naval Academy (I don't know the year they've started in and what age they possess in the show, so just play along) and when we return to present, then I will notify you. I will also soon bring in the rest of the Task Force, once the present has come into date.**

**I do know Military Protocol, especially with the Navy. My father was a Commander himself, and my brother had recently joined the Navy a few years ago. I've been to several ceremonies, and I do from time to time, ask my father how the Navy works.**

**Thanks for reading and please enjoy the story!**

**Disclaimer: All rights reserved for CBS and the managing team of Hawaii 5-0.**

* * *

**Year 1997- Anapolis Naval Academy **

Everything was going into fast motion for Catherine Rollins. It was just like yesterday that she had gotten her acceptance into the Academy. Her father had been proud of her and so was her mother. It was the right choice. The Navy had been in her blood for as long as she could remember. Her father was and currently is Admiral James Rollins of Naval Intelligence. Her mother was Lieutenant Kathleen Dawn-Rollins of the Navy Nursing Corps. She was an only child, and sometimes it felt quite lonely.

She had gone through primary school and high school within a blink of an eye, she had obviously gained her father's brains, and skipped freshman year of high school; which made her graduate at the age of 16. Her first step into the real world was to apply for NROTC while she was still a sophomore, and she had gained her options from there. She had also decided to take in her father step's of going into Naval Intelligence. All of the decision's she has made felt so right for her.

And now here she was, finally done with boot camp and all she had to do before the ceremony on Saturday was to take her Fitness test that was required for each officer of the Navy. Her and a few members of her brigadier was set to have their tests later at 1700. But, there was a bit of a downfall, their tests were also set at the same time the Navy SEALs do their training.

"Hey Rollins, you ready for later?" Her roommate, Regine Kendra, had asked her. Catherine was currently packing her Navy sweats into her bag and water for later.

"Yeah, it should be a piece of cake right? I mean we're both fit." She replied back, she had set her duffel bag on the ground, and sat back onto her bunk.

"True, but all of those SEALs are gonna be training there too, ya know?" Kendra gleamed. Kendra was one of those happy-go-lucky mates. She was always happy, and during their first few weeks of boot camp, she was one to be finished quickly and followed orders to the shine of it, but her personality was way too quirky for Catherine's liking.

"Ken, we are not here to seek out guys." Catherine said and pointed out the obvious.

"I know that, but it's not wrong to look at all the gorgeous men that are going to be shirtless and sweaty when they do their field training." Kendra retorted.

"Yes, but it IS wrong to have relationships among the work place, especially with men who are currently training to be Navy SEALs. They have to be constantly focused, and we can't distract them too much. It'll get us in trouble with our CO's and I don't even wanna know what my dad will say if he hears that I'm fooling around with SEALs."

"Oh Catherine, you're such a goodie two shoe. When was the last time you had a bit of fun with a Navy guy?" Kendra sassed, she even put her hands on her hips to get her point out. Catherine was taken aback, and was quickly fumed.

"KENDRA! That's so not any of your business!"

"Oh, you are SUCH a liar, Catherine Kylie Rollins!" Kendra saw her cheeks go red, as soon as she questioned her about having some fun.

"Details please!" Kendra continued.

"Remember that one time we had the same lunch hour as the SEALs?" Catherine finally spilled. Kendra nodded, not knowing where this was going.

"Yeah, there was that one guy who was hitting on you." Kendra thought back to that day, which was a few weeks back. Kendra finally caught on, and gasped.

"Lieutenant McGarrett. He's a few or so more years older than us, and he's on SEAL Team Six." Kendra recalled.

"Yeah, I kinda- wait, how'd you find out so much about him?" Catherine asked confused.

"When you went to the bathroom that day during lunch, I went to their table and questioned all of them." Kendra said nonchalantly.

"O-okay.." Catherine stretched out. "So, anyways that night when our CO's let us out around the base of the academy, he kinda sorta took me out to lunch.." Kendra was about to speak up, but she stopped her.

"And then, we kinda sorta slept with each other before it was call time to go back." Catherine scratched her head, unsure if she made the right choice on telling Kendra.

"Interesting, I didn't think you would be into him."

"Well, yeah..I was. I actually didn't get to know to know his ranking in the Navy. Hell, I didn't even know he was a SEAL. It was after lunch we came back to his brig, and let me just tell you, he is _definitely _good at what he does. But anyways, I left him before he got the chance to wake up." Catherine said. It was about 1600, and she and Kendra were grabbing their bags to hit the training rooms a bit early to get a workout done before the final test.

"Right, of course you would do that." Kendra looked at her. They were heading out of their brigs and were walking towards the other side of the building to where the Fitness rooms were. As they were heading there, Kendra asked for more questions regarding her fling with Lieutenant McGarrett.

"He's really good looking, kind of surprised you let him _ravish_ you." Kendra joked. Catherine stopped walking and turned around to look at Kendra.

"I did not let him _ravish _me. He's been trying to get a date with me ever since he started hitting on me that first week we got into the Academy. I decided to give him what he wanted, so he could leave me alone." Catherine pointed out.

"He's not one of those guys, you know? I barely here his name going around. I actually heard he's a pretty serious guy. He takes control of everything and he takes matters into his own hands." Kendra offered a fact. Catherine got the information of Lieutenant McGarrett, but the way he acted towards her made her think that he was one of those guys.

* * *

**Fitness Room 2- Time: 1700**

"ATTENTION. PRESENT ARMS!" Petty Officer Sechi commanded. All of the women set for this fitness test stood at attention, and were at their rightful positions. PO Sechi walked in between the isles of the women and checked everyone's posture and made sure they were not to move an inch.

"At ease, ladies." He called out once again, after he did a quick once over. Sechi took his place at the front of the room and looked at all the tired and worrisome faces. Everyone took the command, and were put at rest in their spots.

"Okay, before we start. We're short of staff to run the tests today, so we have two guests that will be overseeing along with me." Sechi said. He grabbed his clipboard off the table, and waved for the two men in the back of the room to come forward. The men stood up front, one on each side of PO Sechi.

"These two have given up portion of their time for their own training to help me out today, so everyone please say hello to Lieutenant McGarrett," Sechi pointed at the man standing on his right side, and McGarrett had waved at everyone with a small smile.

"And this is, Lieutenant Waters." Sechi continued. The other Lieutenant bid the same to everyone, but only Catherine had she be the one to notice the familiar face at the front of the room. McGarrett took a glimpse at every woman standing in the room, and caught the face of the other Naval Intelligence officer Lieutenant Rollins.

"I'll divide everyone in two three groups. Since there's 36 of you altogether, 12 will either be in my group, Lieutenant McGarrett's, or Lieutenant Waters. I will roll call each name only once, so listen carefully." Petty Officer Sechi said, he took the clipboard and started calling off names.

After 30 names had been called off, 6 remain standing in the middle of the room, and were waiting to be called.

"Rollins and Kendra, you're going off to McGarrett's group." Rollins stood in shock, and Kendra had just nudged her in the side. They walked over to where McGarrett was standing, and he gave a small wink to Rollins, who had just rolled her eyes at him.

"Masters, Frya, you're with me. Demps and Serr with Waters." PO Sechi called off the final four names, and everyone were now in their designated groups.

"Okay, now since that's settled. Here's the agenda for the next three hours. At exactly 1800, we will all begin the 1.5 mile run. That will last up till who ever's the last one to cross the finish line. At about 1930, we will have a four minute break. At 1934, we will begin the 500 yard and 450 meter swim dash. Again, that will last approximately an hour depending one how fast everyone is examined. At 2035, we will do the final two stages; curl ups and push ups. These don't last very long, so it should be quick. So let's hustle everyone!" He barked. When no one moved an inch..

"IS THAT CLEAR OR DO YOU WANT TO GIVE UP DINNER TONIGHT TO SERVE ME 200 PUSH UPS?" He commanded. This caught everyone's attention, and they had started heading towards the doors.

"McGarrett take your group to the second right field, and Waters take your group to the left field." He called out to the men who were gathering their groups. They had nodded back at Sechi in agreement.

"Alright, you heard the plan for the next few hours. We have about thirty minutes until we begin. Everyone get suited up, you have five minutes. So, let's hustle people!" The ladies had obeyed the orders of their superior, and grabbed their bags with their clothes residing in them. They had went into the changing room, and had used every second of their 'Navy' change time to make sure they were all set. First couple out of the room was of course Rollins and Kendra. They walked to their spots, and stood at ease in front of McGarrett. Once five minutes had passed, all but a few were ready. He was about to say the next set of directions, that is until the last three people stumbled out of the change room in full dress.

"I guess I was being too lenient, you're lucky I didn't give you two minutes." He glared at the three who were the last ones out. He walked over to them and stared them dead straight in the eye.

"I'm going to let this slide, since I'm not your CO. But.. this doesn't happen too often. So, let me make this clear, when your superior says a certain time, you make _sure _you are ready in that time that was allotted. Is that understood?" He directed it towards to the last three woman, and they stood at attention, presenting arms as well.

When no one spoke up, "I said, is that understood?" He called out once again.

"Sir, yes, sir." They said.

"Good, I'm glad we're on the same page then. Since, we wasted seven minutes, I want everyone on the field for the first event at _exactly _1745, not a minute later, so we could warm up. Is that clear?" He spoke to each individual. They all responded and started to head out of the building.

"Is that clear, Rollins?" McGarrett wanted to call her out. He felt like her attention wasn't fully directed to him.

"Crystal clear, Lieutenant McGarrett." She said smartly.

"Great. Like I said exactly 1745, I'll meet you on our designated field." Everyone nodded and started their ascend towards their assigned field.

* * *

**Completion of Fitness Exams – Mess Hall – Time: 2100**

Rollins and Kendra had taken their dinner at a table with the others, ready to eat and hungry per say, was an understatement. They were now back in their fatigue clothing, but that doesn't describe how sore their bodies were. Their superiors had really pushed their bodies to the breaking point.

"I wanna say I'm tired, but that's an understatement. I'm just so sore." Rollins said. She took her seat across from Kendra, and had nodded in agreement. They had started a conversation, until someone tapped her on the back. She looked behind her, and saw that it was her CO. She stood up at attention and gave him a salute.

"At ease, Rollins. Ensign Freedo dropped this in my office saying it was marked urgent in the mail boxes, it's for you." He handed her the letter, and walked away back to his office. Rollins was confused, she took a seat once again, before opening the letter, she made sure nobody was looking.

_'Rollins, you did well during the tests. In fact, your scores were pretty up there. Glad to see that you know how to hustle. You know I was in Intel, but since I made the switch to SEAL, I'll be doing more of my training as well as an Intel officer at the Coronado base. So what? You may ask. Well, you're first assignment after graduation, is to report to the USS Enterprise that is currently based in Coronado as well._

_How did I find out? I sorta may have some connections. Anyways, I guess I'll take this chance and ask you out to dinner once we're on base. _

_See you soon, _

_McGarrett'_

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed this first part! I would like some feedback before I continue to write the next chapter. If you have any questions, leave it in a review, and I'll make sure to get back at you. Thanks for reading! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 2**

**10 April 2014**

**Author's Note: **Thank you so much for such wonderful feedback! I love receiving great comments from all of you, it means a lot to me. Regarding my updates, I will start writing pre-written chapters, so when I have the time to revise and edit, I will definitely update one every few days. You know how life gets hard sometimes, but I will always try to find a way to get these chapters up as fast as possible! Just to let you know, this chapter has a lot of flashbacks due to the time jump, so the text in italics indicates a flashback. Quick reminder that this is only a two year jump, not much has happened in their relationship yet.

Also, in accordance to the first chapter, I did in fact write that Steve is apart of SEAL Team 6, I would like everyone to know the importance behind that team in reality. If I do, however, offend or bring a bad omen among my readers, I did not intend to do that on purpose.

Enjoy this chapter everyone!

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS.

* * *

**Time Jump: 3 Years (2000) – Location: Coronado Naval Base, California**

_Catherine was now assigned to her first location as an Intelligence officer. It had been 3 months since her graduation, and she was on her way to Coronado. Thinking back to the past year, she had matured and grown up a lot. No longer was she the girl before she left for basic training. She is now the woman she wanted to be. _

_After receiving that letter from McGarrett, she had never saw him once again, that was until Basic Training Graduation, a few days later. But since then, she had no contact from him. She wondered about him these past months. 'Probably deployed somewhere in the world, knowing how intense SEAL missions can get,' she thought. She also wondered if he kept that promise about having dinner at base. To be quite honest, Catherine was definitely up to it. It was just something about him that made her want more._

_She had also gone up to the O-1 rankings and above, she is now Lieutenant Catherine Rollins. It was something about her work and ethics that made the higher ups think that she deserved that kind of ranking. Not to sound cocky, but Catherine definitely loved how the name sounded when she was being talked about._

_Arriving at the base in the Navy Aircraft Carrier, she was exhausted from the seven hour flight. She was ready to head to her apartment; that her father had helped to pay, on base. To sleep in that warm bed that was currently awaiting her. Grabbing her things and exiting the plane, she found the car her father had sent from Chicago, the Chevy Corvette. Due to her ranking, she was able to have her car on base. Walking into the building where her room was at for the next four months, she quickly checked in and basically ran to the fifth floor. _

_Not even five minutes had she dropped her bags on the floor and climbed onto her bunk, someone had knocked on her door. 'Great, someone already wants me.' Catherine thought. She got up off her bed and opened the door to a young Ensign officer. She was at attention, and had her arms in position. _

"_At ease, Ensign Wigman." Catherine said, looking at the tag that was on Wigman's chest._

_Wigman was put at ease, and held an envelope in the air, "Lieutenant Rollins, this came for you at the front desk. Also, Captain Regma wants the Naval Intel's up and ready at 0500 to officially start their assignment tomorrow morning." _

_Catherine nodded, and sent the young officer away. Opening the envelope, she smiled at the contents that was written on the back side before reading the letter._

_**'I've been waiting to see you on base these past few months. I can't say where I was after graduation due to confidentiality, but I definitely missed seeing you around back at the Academy. Glad you had a safe trip here, and I can't wait to see you. **_

_**P.S I haven't forgotten about that dinner I said in that last letter. Meet me outside of the building at 1800. Not a minute later, Rollins. Dress casually.**_

_**See you soon, Lieutenant.**_

_**X**_

_**McGarrett'**_

_Catherine smiled at Steve's childish handwriting. She also smiled at the phrase he said to their group that day he took their physical exams. 'Fantastic, what am I supposed to wear?' She wished Kendra was here. She wasn't an Intel officer, so Kendra was located in a different dormitory. She made a mental note to visit Kendra when she found the time. _

_Looking at the clock on her phone, she had noticed it was already 1630, realizing how much time she had left before the dinner with Steve, she quickly dumped the contents of her small bag, and looked for the nicest but casual clothing. Finding a light gray camisole, a white cardigan, black leggings, and a pair of white sequenced flats, she grabbed them and placed them on the counter in her bathroom. Running back to her bed, she grabbed the lacy material of undergarments, and ran back to the bathroom. 'I'm glad I brought tons of these, you never know when you need them to get luck,' she thought. _

_After taking most of the allotted time, she got ready and looked nice for the man she was waiting to jump in the arms of, for the past three months. Doing a last check in the mirror, she grabbed her purse and phone of her dresser, and locked the door behind her. Catherine took the elevator back to the lobby, so she could get there without a hassle. Arriving at the lobby, she bid salutes to the passing superior officers; although she wasn't wearing her uniform, it's still rather important, she walked out of the building door, and saw a man's back facing her just a few feet away. She saw him dressed in white cargo's, a black – rather tight t-shirt, and combats. She approached him in a sneaky but quiet manner, and wrapped her arms around his torso, he turn around in surprise, and almost shoved her to the ground._

"_Hey Sailor," She smiled up at him, and he grinned back at her. He attached his arms to her waist, and put his lips to hers. After a minute of their welcome make out session, he released for air._

"_So glad to see you, Lieutenant. I missed you." He said, they started heading towards the parking lot to where his truck was. _

"_How did you know about the jump in rankings?" She asked quite confused. He opened the passenger door for her, and she jumped in. Then, he walked around to the driver's seat and climbed in, putting the keys into the ignition. _

"_I kind of kept my tabs on you, after I left for my mission. Just to let you know, I am now referred to as Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett of the Navy SEALs." He smiled, and started to head off base. _

"_Wow, congratulations, Sailor." She smiled back at him, clearly proud of his accomplishments. After a few minutes of a comfortable silence, Steve spoke up again._

"_I got us reservations at this restaurant about fifteen minutes from here." He said._

"_Steve! You said to dress casually!" Catherine declared. They were literally about to walk into a restaurant looking like this._

"_Relax, Cath. It's not that fancy of a place, it's fine." Steve reassured, he took his eyes off the road ahead of him, and looked at her for a second. She relaxed just like he said, and let out a sigh._

"_Anyways, we're going to celebrate tonight. Celebrate our jump in rankings; although it doesn't matter so much, celebrate you being here, and prepare for the after party, if you know what I mean." He said, he turned and looked at her once again, and winked._

"_Whatever is on your plan tonight, Commander. I'm just glad I'm with you." She said, she looked at him, and gave him a sweet smile. That was the last thing that was said in the car, before they had arrived at the restaurant. It was medium sized, and it looked cozy. 'Martino's Italian Bistro,' it said, when they passed the front, heading into the parking lot. _

"Good morning, lieutenant." Steve said, he kissed a hallowed spot in her neck, and she smiled. She kissed him back on the lips.

"Good morning, commander." She replied back. The both of them had an obsession with addressing each other by their ranks. Although it made no big of a deal, it made Steve feel like he was in control of her. It was now 2000, three years had passed since they first encountered each other at the Academy. And now, here they were, snuggling up with each other in Steve's dormitory. These past two years with him made her feel like she was on cloud nine, no doubt. Excluding other deployments and SEAL missions, they were now back in Coronado.

"Breakfast or...we could stay in bed all day?" Steve asked, he was currently nipping at her neck, and she was playing along with him. She moaned out, but she also looked at the clock beside them.

"Steve, that sounds great, but I have to get to work in just about an hour, and you.." She said, poking him in the chest.

"Mister, have training soon as well. But if we did have breakfast, it would more be like MRE's and some kind of protein bar, knowing you." Catherine continued. She got out of bed and grabbed Steve's Navy shirt off the ground and her underwear, she put them on, and continued to pick up clothing as she walked around.

"I object, Cath. I find the MRE's better than regular food." He chuckled, and threw a pillow at her. She dodged it, and she started laughing.

"Sure..whatever floats your boat." She joked. After a few moments of silence, she finally spoke up again.

"Steve, I have to tell you something.." She said in all seriousness, she realized what the date was tomorrow, and figured this was the best time to tell him. She sat on the edge of his bed, and he sat up with a confused look on his face.

He nodded for her to go on, and she said, "I have a month deployment on the Enterprise, I leave tomorrow." A hint of sadness was found in her voice. He just sat there quietly, taking everything in. After a few minutes have passed, he finally spoke up.

"Tomorrow? Well, I guess we'll have to make up for a month's worth of you know, tonight. Not bad, considering, I do have another mission set for next week, I'll be gone for a couple weeks." He mentioned.

"Oh... I guess we only have tonight right?" She said, more sadness was found in her voice. She and Steve had no label on their relationship, but she knew that they were more than friends, if she could describe it that.

"I believe so, if things change, I'll make sure to have someone send you a note." He got out of bed, and started getting his fatigue's ready for training.

"So, this is goodbye then? If we don't see each other tonight?" Catherine asked. She grabbed her camo pants off the chair across from the bed, and put them on. She turned around and saw him smiling at her.

"No, Cath, more like a 'see you later', alright?" He reassured her, and she ran up to him and gave Steve a big hug. He grabbed her in for a kiss that could keep them set for a month. She finally released for air, and they just gazed into each others eyes for a moment.

"I'll see you soon, sailor." She smiled at him, and she got out of his release, she gave him one last peck on the cheek, and she went for the door.

"Back at you, lieutenant." He said. She walked out the door, and grinned at him one last time before turning into the hallway.

_They walked into the restaurant hand in hand. He saw the host at the front desk, taking reservations and what not. He gave the host his last name, and a waitress had escorted them to a table for two. Steve and Catherine sat down, and she started to look at the menu._

"_Told you, it wasn't that fancy." He said, she looked up at him and rolled her eyes at him. _

"_Well, I was quite worried that I wasn't dressed for the occasion. I still believe this isn't the nicest clothing I could own for a casual date." She said, looking down at her outfit._

"_Cath, you look beautiful in whatever you wear. Especially, when you wear your camo's." He retorted. It was true, she looked great in anything she wore, according to him. During boot camp at the academy, it was cute to him that she ran around in her camo's, and he would be just staring at her, taking in the sight. _

_She smiled at him. Beneath all of that macho SEAL personality, there was the sweet side of him. A side that she only got to see a few times in the time that she's known him. He was caring, and it made her flutter inside, because she didn't know a guy could that to her. She was younger than him by three years, he was twenty, and she was seventeen. _

Catherine was eating lunch in the command center of the base, it was now 1300, and she had no word from him, on whether or not she'd see him tonight. Knowing how intense the SEAL training could get, he could have a possible tactical, or even have aerial and water training tonight to prepare them for their next mission. While looking at several things on the computer in front of her, someone tapped her on the back. She turned around and it was an officer, obviously younger than her.

"Lieutenant Rollins, a message for you from Commander McGarrett." The officer saluted her and went about face. She loved the notes that he sent to her, it had meant a lot to her that he thinks about her when sending these letters.

_**'Rollins, I just got word from the Captain. Apparently, I'll be gone for more than a couple weeks, I'll be gone for two months. I know you'll be gone for a month, but I'll be thinking about you everyday. Once I get to where the team needs to be, I'll write to you. Hell, I'll write to you everyday until I come back. I know you'll be safe on the Enterprise, but you know how these missions get. They can get pretty dangerous. But be careful for me, lieutenant. **_

_**I'll see you soon, Cath.**_

_**X**_

_**McGarrett'**_

She slumped in her chair, and let out a sigh. Two months? She wasn't going to see him for two months? Maybe he could have access to a web cam, and they'd be able to chat over satellite, of course she'd be able to have the security clearance, but she won't be able to do that until they were at least a fourth done with the mission. She smiled at the note once last time before putting it into a pocket of her flack jacket. She played with the ID Dog Tag necklace that Steve had given her for her 19th birthday, she always touched it when he was gone for some time. The tag read his name and Navy SEAL. It was a simple gift, but it felt like he was with her.

They have been somewhat a couple for three years, but she was definitely feeling something towards Steve, and didn't even know what it was. Steve was making her go crazy, but she loved the feeling.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! I love reading your thoughts on this story so far, so don't forget to drop a review! **

**x**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 3**

**11 April 2014**

**Author's Note: **Mahalo for all the great reviews! I remember when my father was stationed in Pearl Harbor, and I picked up on the Hawaiian language, interesting how their culture is formed and develops over the years. Anyways, this chapter goes back to the show, but remember when Catherine dated Billy, when Steve and her were on break? I wonder what really happened that caused them to go on break, let's find out, huh?

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS.

* * *

**3 Weeks Later – Catherine: USS Enterprise – Steve: Classified SEAL Mission**

It had been three weeks since they last saw each other. Each day of those three weeks, Catherine received about two letters from Steve. Due to the classification of the mission, he was unable to write everyday like he promised to, but she was fine with it. She was glad he had written to her. She had not written back yet, but she will today. Today marks the day when they first met..it's been three years today.

"_This food is great, Steve. Thanks for bringing me." Catherine said. They had ordered their meals for the night. This was their first dinner together, she remembers that letter he had sent to her saying that he owes her dinner. _

"_There will be plenty of these in the future, babe." He looked up at her, and grinned. She mentally screamed, he said 'future' as in, he sees me in his future. But, there was one thing that bothered her, she hated being called babe, or baby. Her mother still calls her baby. _

"_Steve, I'd rather you not call me babe." She said. She was pretty dead serious. He just looked at her, he wasn't sure what to say._

"_Wait..why?" Steve asked curiously._

She was sitting in the command room of the USS Enterprise. Her captain ordered specific things to work on for the day, and here she was seven hours into her shift. While waiting on information she currently logged in, she started to think of her 'relationship' with Steve. Catherine didn't know what to call it. Steve had never called her his girlfriend, or has he ever put a label on their relationship. It's been three years today had she met Steve. Three years worth of him going into missions, making her think that she might not be able to see him again. Nightmares where an Ensign of the Navy, would be knocking on her door in the middle of the night, saying that Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett was killed in action. Or another possibility that he might have gone missing in action. All of these were possibilities. She silently prayed every night that he was gone for a certain period of time, for him to be coming back into her arms.

She hoped that she will never have to go through that. One time, she was very close to cutting off the relationship, because quite frankly, she was scared of losing him. Steve had stopped her though, he realized how much he needed her in his life, and he asked her to stay. To stay and comfort him when he needed it the most. To stay and have long nights with him. To stay until he was barely breathing. To stay when he gets hurt in a mission, and she is the first to be notified.

But she still was confused on where they were standing. She hadn't known much about Steve's past. She was only told that it was dangerous waters coming from his SEAL buddies. When she asked about it, he would change the subject, and just move on from there. What if this past of his was keeping him from opening up to her? All she knew was that his mother was murdered. She had known nothing of his father, or any other relatives of the McGarrett family. Sometimes, she even wanted to violate Navy protocol, and access his family record's through Naval Intelligence, but no that was a bad move. She would never do that.

They have been together or whatever they were called, for three years. Three years of him leaving her for a mission. Sure, she had her fair share of deployments, but they were only for short periods of time. When she was stationed in Guam, he had flew there – on leave – to visit her on Valentines Day. Her birthday was on Valentine's Day, and he had given her the dog tags with his name on it. She deeply appreciated the gift, it made her feel ultimately close to him, even if he was halfway around the world.

-H50-

Steve was now located on a remote island, that due to the high security of the mission, he was not able to put a name on it. It's been three weeks, his team and him, had been undercover in the forest, looking for the enemy. This was not just a small mission, it was a top secret case that only the commanding officers guiding this mission, had the security clearance for it.

He was able to contact Catherine through letters, but the information of his whereabouts was not even in her clearance. She had not written back yet, and he wished she did. She was deployed somewhere in the waters, he wasn't sure where she was. The captain said he was able to clear him for a seven minute webcam chat with Catherine, but he had to wait another week for that to happen. He was only granted seven minutes because of the connection and the possible interference of the opponent's on the Navy's frequency.

He was sitting in the cabin his team had set up, he was restless. He was tired and his body was sore. But he was not done fighting. He trained his body and his mind to keep moving. To be able to defeat the enemy. That's why he was a Navy SEAL, he was trained for this. He wanted this. This was for his country. Awaiting the next instruction from Captain Romerez, he sat in the chair and thought back.

_Why wasn't he allowed to call her babe or baby or any other pet names? She sat across from him, and she gave him a cute smile after her warning. She was beautiful. Steve had his time with lots of girls in the past, but Catherine defeated all of them. She was smart, intelligent, and not to mention her good lucks. There was a lot of things that Steve had liked about Catherine._

"_Steve, come on! It's over used, and my own mother still calls me 'baby'!" She exclaimed. She took a bit of her pasta, and put it into her mouth._

"_Fine, we have our own little pet names, right Cath?" He joked and winked at her. They had ordered their meals, but no liquor. They could be surprised on due time drug and urine tests any day. If they were found having alcohol in their systems, they could be court-martialed or even discharged if found with such high levels of alcohol in their system, with implications. They couldn't risk it, consequences of court-martial could get their privilege of leaving the base taken away from them and suspension. The military doesn't joke around with alcohol._

"_Yes, Steve. We have our own names for each other, and it should stay that way." She had some kind of glint in her eyes, that made him feel like there was a fusing sexual tension bomb about to go off. Yeah, they were ready to get this dinner over with. _

_He nodded, and asked, "Right ,let's finish up with dinner, and we can head back to my dorm?" He wiggled his eyebrows, and she replies with a shake of her head._

"_Sorry, bud. I have drill at 0500 tomorrow." She teased. He grunted in his seat, and he just thinks of the next possible way he could get his hands on her._

"_How bout, we finish dinner, head back in to my truck, and we could make out in the back seat like a bunch of teenagers?" He suggested._

* * *

**Four Weeks Later – Last Quarter of SEAL Team 6 Mission: Classified**

He still had no word from Catherine. He wondered about her every second when he was not focused on the mission. They were once again sitting in the cabin with the technology and setting up their weapons for the final course. He had wondered if Catherine was back in Coronado, but he thought again and most likely she was already there. He can't wait to see her in a couple days. They were finally allowed contact with the outside world, and he was able to chat with her through web cam tomorrow, atleast that's what the Captain said.

A few of his teammates were getting their packs ready, and the Captain came in with a few letters in his hand. He tapped Steve on the back, and he turned around.

"Commander, here's one for you." The Captain smiled at Steve, and walked away delivering the other letters. Steve opened the letter, and read the date that was written on the top left, it clearly was written a couple weeks ago, but they've only received it today due to the recent implication's of interferences. He finally read the contents of the letter Catherine sent him.

_**Hi Steve;**_

_**You probably haven't gotten this letter the week it was sent to you. I know what's been going on, my father told me all that he could about this SEAL mission, and he told me updates with your team. I'm so glad you're safe, you've been constantly on my mind these past two months. I know haven't written back for those previous letters, but I decided to leave all that I wanted to say in one big message. I know you promised me a web chat if the Captain could establish a clear connection, but I don't think that's necessary anymore.**_

Steve frowned at the last thing he read before he continued reading. Why wouldn't it be necessary? He wondered.

_**I've received instructions from my commanding officer, and it's a tough one. I feel bad that I can't tell you this in person, but our jobs and duties matters first. But, I'm being transferred to the Apra Harbor of Guam's Naval Base. I'll be gone for this tour for approximately six months. I can totally imagine your face once you read this part of the letter. It was a surprise to me as well, but you know how the Navy works, Steve. I know you know that. That's not all I have to say though.**_

_**I want you to know about how much fun I've had with you for the past three years. You're my best friend, Steve. I don't know what I'd do without you. Super SEAL, I can't handle what we call a relationship. I wish you'd get your priorities straight. I know your job, I know what you do, and it's dangerous. We all know that. Sometimes I can't help to be affected by it. I know you're gone constantly gone on missions, but it's hurting me, Steve. We don't even have a label on our relationship. I wish I would've told you all of this in person, I just couldn't bare to see your face. I've been wanting to tell you ever since you left for this mission, but I think we should see other people for a while. I want us to take a break. We're new in the Navy, and we have lots of opportunities constantly being thrown at us, and I want us to make the decisions and sacrifices that it deserves. I know it's hard, and I bet you're a bit mad once you read this part. I think it's for the best for now, Steve. You mean a lot to me, Sailor. Don't ever forget that. I want us still to be friends. I want us to have dinners and whenever we have leave we could meet somewhere, but as far as boyfriend/girlfriend stuff, I'd rather not cross that road again. One day, I want to be able to be called your girlfriend, it's just a matter of you. It's all up to you, Steven J. McGarrett. If we ever suddenly see each other, I don't want it to be awkward. I hope you want us to remain friends. Your friendship means a whole lot to me. Like I said, it's all up to you.**_

_**Good luck, Sailor. I miss you so much and please be safe.**_

_**XO Catherine**_

* * *

**Please don't hurt me! I've been wanting to write about their break ever since the show had mentioned it. I thought it was necessary, and it's completely realistic. I will not be bringing in Billy, I don't know much about his character, and it will be hard writing the relationship between him and Catherine. Fair warning, next chapter will be a big time jump, and it will be the last one for a while. I'm trying to get to a certain point of their relationship, where everything is stable, and only the little things will effect them. This is simply another trial they both have to manage to overcome.**

**I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, I'm working everyday this week, but I will try to sneak in writing the next chapter and try to get it up as soon as possible. Mahalo for reading, and don't forget to drop a review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 4**

**12 April 2014**

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all of the great reviews. Towards the end of the chapter, it kind of becomes an emotional ride, the next one I believe you will be touched the most, this chapter is broken up in to two parts.

Since the end of the chapter you'll find out what happens, please do not be offended, I wanted to bring this part of history into my story, and if I did offend anyone, please notify me. I personally did not intend to do it on purpose.

**Disclaimer:** All rights reserved for NBC.

* * *

**Time Jump: 1 Year, 10 September 2001 – Before It All Went Down (Part 1 of 2 Chapters) – Steve POV**

If there's one thing that I've learned this past year, it would be the fact that I need to train myself on how to be committed to the ones that are close to me. Over the past several years, I've lost trust in several people. I take my mother for example, she was an ex-CIA agent, and she disappeared off the face of the Earth when I was fifteen. My father, he was a giant mess when he found out my mother went missing, by the time he learned about it, they officially pronounced her dead. I haven't seen my father in years, I left for the academy right when I finished high school, he didn't want me being a cop. I try not to get attached to people if they get close to me, I'll end up getting hurt.

A year ago, Catherine sent me the letter that changed everything. If I hadn't pushed her away so much, then maybe she wouldn't have written it. I haven't heard from her in a while, once I came back from my mission, she was gone in Guam, she had left nothing behind. She came back to Coronado just a few months ago, but we haven't seen each other around much. Last I've heard of her, she was seeing William Harrington, I trained with him, but he was in SEAL Team Two. His team deals with other differentials and situations. But according to a buddy of mine, their relationship didn't last too long. I missed Catherine. I missed being able to kiss her neck, and make her scream my name. I missed being able to be in control of her. She was a huge part of me, I just wish I hadn't let her go that easily. Like she said, it was all up to me, she was set, I just had to make the mark.

I haven't been on a recent mission in a few months, but I've been sent to many different places to do SEAL training. In the past year, I've been to Texas, Russia, Kabul, and Japan, three months of training in each place. I've only been a SEAL for four years, I put my dedication towards it. After I graduated from Annapolis in 1992, I became an officer in Intelligence, did my duty there for five years years, and started SEAL training in 1997, the year Catherine and I had met. The year that basically turned my personal life upside down...in a good way. As a SEAL, you were trained to push your emotions beneath the surface, but I wish I haven't done it for Catherine.

William Harrington, or Billy, I trained with him, but he never knew I had a thing for Catherine, our relationship had to be on the down low, if any of the higher ups found out we were seeing each other – especially her father – we both could be court martialed, and I don't think any of us would've liked that. I guess I could give Billy a free pass, he didn't know about Catherine and I, unless she told him about us. Our ranks were completely different, but it's strictly prohibited for a superior to be seeing their subordinate. If the Admiral (A.K.A Catherine's father), found out about what we had, we could end up in some serious trouble. As I was lying in my bunk, awaiting to leave for my training, a knock was placed on my door. I went up and opened the door to reveal the person I've been wanting to see for the past year.

"Lieutenant Rollins, what can I do for you?" I said. I was shocked, I haven't seen her in a year. We were both in our working uniforms, formalities had to be addressed. She saluted me, and I put her at ease.

"Commander McGarrett, the Admiral wanted me to inform you that SEAL Teams Two and Six were scheduled to leave for training tonight, your flight will be at 1900, you will arrive in Washington D. C's Naval Base at approximately 2300." She informed me.

"Thank you, Lieutenant Rollins. Has my team been informed already?" I asked.

"Aye, Commander. Permission to speak and move freely, sir?" She replied.

"Permission granted," I let her into my room, and she sat on my bed. I looked at her, and put my hands in the pockets of my camo's.

"Steve.." She didn't continue, she just sat there tearing up. I guess this is the time where we will talk about what the hell had happened over the past year. I sat down next to her, and wrapped her into a hug. We just sat there for a few minutes in each others arms until she stood back up, and turned towards me.

"Steve, I'm so sorry. I messed up, big time. I wanted a break, but I was not myself. I went to another guy, but I'm sure you knew about that already. I-I was scared, Steve. Afraid that one day you're on a mission, and you never came home." She choked out. Her eyes were glistening with water, and I wiped them a way slyly.

"Shh, Cath. It's going to be alright." It was true, Catherine and I were going to be alright. No matter how our relationship goes, we're going to be just fine. I tightened my grasp around Catherine, and she slowly started feeling better. I was about to place a kiss on her lips, but she stopped me.

"Okay, we're in uniform, Steve. I shouldn't even be in physical contact with my superior." She said and smiled at me. I nodded, and stood back up again in military form, totally forgetting about formalities for those moments with Catherine.

"Lieutenant, I believe I should get back to packing now. You are free to leave now." I commanded. If someone walked in here during this private moment, we would have gotten court martial.

Catherine saluted, and was about to leave, "Commander, permission to speak freely again?"

"Permission denied. Do you have anything to add, Lieutenant?" I asked.

"My team of Naval Intelligence will be going with you as well back to Washington D.C. The Admiral has to meet with your team before you leave tonight for further instructions, his quarters at 1500. I guess we'll see each other around, sir?"

"Of course." I said. I saluted her, and she walked out of the door. Great, I'm meeting with Admiral Rollins, I hope this isn't a trip to court martial. But then again, he's asking for the SEAL teams as well. I began to walk to my closet, packed my camouflage uniform, and my formal uniform. If we're going to Washington D.C, there's a good chance we're meeting with the President.

At around 1800, I gathered my SEAL team, and we walked to the Admiral's quarters. Knocking on our superior's door, he let us in. As we got in, we all stood in a straight line and stood at attention presenting our arms. He put us at ease, and he started to speak up.

"Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett of SEAL Team Six, reporting to you, Admiral." I addressed myself, and introduced him to my team.

"I know who you are, son." He put his hand out for me to shake, and I gladly took it. He looked at me in the eye, as if he knew me from somewhere, and it kind of made me uncomfortable, making me even more nervous. This was the first personal meet with the Admiral, also known as Catherine's father. After a few moments of silence, he broke it and walked in front of us, as if he was checking us as sailors who were still in boot camp.

"Admiral, permission to speak freely?" I asked as he passed by me.

"Permission granted, what is it son?" He replied. He stood back at his desk in the front of the room, and looked at all of us.

"Why did you call us down here and not Team Two?"

"This meeting only pertains to you. And so I will begin with your assignment. If there are no further questions, I will tell you the agenda." He looked around seeing if anyone had something to say, with a shake of his head, he continued.

"I'm sure Lieutenant Rollins reported to you, Commander?" He asked me. I nodded my head in agreement.

"Good, anyways. At 1900, you will board on the carrier to Washington D.C. You will arrive at the Naval Base near the Pentagon at around 2330. From there, you will check in with your identification, and they will direct you to your brigadier for the stay. At 0200, you are to report to LCDR McGarrett, he will give you orders for the training session. That session will end at 0500. At 0600, you will get into your formal service uniform, you will have a meeting with the President at 0700. Make sure you bring both your camouflage and Dress Whites with you to the meeting. That meeting will end at 0840. After the meeting, you will get back into your SEAL uniform. The president will be ordering you from there. Is this understood, gentlemen?"

"Aye aye, sir." They all saluted him.

"You are all free to leave, get some shut-eye before you board the aircraft carrier. And yes, you will be jumping off the plane. No, this is not a test or a joke." He looked at the men, they thought he was joking. Then the admiral continued, "Commander McGarrett, may you please stay back?" I nodded, and the rest of my brothers had left the office and head back into their dormitories.

"Yes, sir?" I asked. I was now officially sweating. He probably found about Catherine and I's relationship. Yup, I'm going to court-martial and there goes my career.

"You have my permission to speak and move freely." He granted. I took a seat at one of the chairs in front of his desk, and waited for him to talk.

"I assume you're the Steve that my daughter is seeing?" The Admiral asked. Okay, I better answer this truthfully.

"That is me, sir." He nodded, and folded his hands neatly on his desk. The man was intimidating, no joke about that.

"Catherine is younger than you. I expect that you will take good care of my daughter. I know what happened between you, and she told me how things went down. I was a former SEAL myself, son. I know what it's like. I will not report you to court. You both have completely different ranks, and you are a SEAL, and she's in Intelligence. There's no harm in that in my books. Don't take advantage of my free pass. If you do, you know the consequences." He warned.

"I'll take very good care of her, sir. I will never hurt her in anyway." I replied back. It was true, even though I currently don't know where our relationship stands, but as far as I'm concerned, we're back to that 'thing', like before. No it won't be like before, and things will change, but we'll figure it out.

"Good. She's being sent off to the Naval Intelligence Headquarters earlier, so I send you on you're way. I'll see you soon, Steve." I nodded, and shook his hand once again, I left the office, and ran to where the Ladies' dormitories were located, just the next building. After finding her room, I knocked on her door and waited for her to answer. After a few minutes, she opened the door in her fatigues, and looked like she was ready to leave.

"Steve, what are you doi-?" I cut her off with a direct kiss onto her lips. She was taken back at this action, and led us back in to her room, shutting the door behind her. She pushed me onto her bed, and I flipped us over. I was on top of her, and she was just beneath me. This was throwing all military protocol out of the window. It was prohibited to have physical contact with your uniform on, but we left formalities aside for just a second, and I focused my attention onto her. She let go for air, and I plopped down on the bed beside her.

"Okay, I definitely missed that, Sailor. But anyways, what are you doing here? Since you rudely interrupted me." She joked. I threw a cheeky smile at her, and gave her a wink.

"I just wanted to do that before we left for D.C. But my flight leaves in about an hour, I'm gonna catch some shut eye before we leave. I'll see you tomorrow, Lieutenant?" I said. I placed one last kiss onto every place on her face, and finally left one on her lips before I got up off her bed, and left the room.

"You got it, Commander." She winked at me, and I chuckled. Catherine was adorable, and I missed that side of her. I left her dormitory and headed back to mine.

-H50-

Once I got my team and team two set and under my command – Admiral's orders, not mine – we boarded the aircraft carrier and got seated on the floor of the plane. It was highly uncomfortable to sleep on these types of plane because of the noises, so we grabbed our ear protection, and pushed our bags and what not to the place where the parachute's were located.

As the four hours had passed, we arrived mid-air above the Naval Base, I called both teams up before we jumped off, and we got set to parachute down into the base. Getting our gear on, we waited for the go-signal of the pilot, and I let the others before my self, jump off. Once everyone had been released into the air, I grabbed my bag and ran a jumpstart before going into mid-air. Arriving safely onto the target set for us, I counted each of member of the teams and that added to the total I was supposed to have.

"Aye, Waters!" I called my buddy, Lieutenant Frederick Waters, over to where I was walking. He was a good friend of mine. Back in SEAL training, he wanted to quit right away, but I convinced him not to give up so quickly, and here he is with my team today.

"Commander, what could I do for you?" He said. He walked side by side with me, and we reported to the station where they would take our check in and identification.

"Drop the formalities, Freddy." I joked. He nodded with a smile, and we talked about the plan that was set in store for the the next day. He asked about my relationship with Catherine, and I answered the questions that he had for me. When we arrived at the station, two guards came to us.

"You must be Commander McGarrett?" One of the guards asked.

I nodded, and then he continued, "The Admiral informed us that SEAL Teams Two and Six will be residing here for the night. We will need to check your luggage and ID's before we let you guys in, Commander." I let them do their job, and it went by pretty fast. After we were checked, they led us to our rooms for the night and I called the teams together.

"Lieutenant Harrington, Team Two has their own set of instructions, am I correct?" I asked the man standing across from me. Billy Harrington was known as Catherine's little fling after our break. It was kind of cold between him and I, but that is the least of my worries right now. I'll deal with this situation later.

"Yes, Commander." He said. I freed them to get some sleep, and we will meet with them whenever we are instructed to.

"Okay, get a good night sleep tonight. No leaving the base or your rooms, be up at 0400 sharp, not a minute later. Am I clear, gentlemen?" I was tired and cranky, thus my very sharp tone of voice.

"Aye Aye, sir." I freed them to leave. After everyone was settled in their room, I went into mine for the night, and got into my uniform for the next day so I will be ready and be wasting no time tomorrow morning. I set an alarm on my phone for 0355, and plopped in my bed for a sleep.

-H50-

Our morning training session had gone by quickly and it was time for us to head back to our dorms and get dressed in our Dress Whites. I wanted us to be ready in thirty minutes, by that time, a driver will be outside waiting for us, and we will be going to meet the President. I informed everyone of the allotted time and we got dressed. According to Catherine, apparently seeing me in my Dress Whites really brought out the color of my eyes. I did a quick check into the mirror, and grabbed my bag with my camo's in and ready to be worn after the meeting.

Doing a quick head count, the driver and members of the Secret Service had taken identification and checked our bags. Arriving at the White House, the Secret Service led us through security once again and checked our clearances. While waiting in the lobby, two members of the service had come down with President Bush behind them, we stood at attention, and waited for further instructions.

"This must be SEAL Team Six." He looked at us, and put us at ease.

"Which one of you is Lieutenant Commander McGarrett?" He asked. When I heard my credentials being called, I raised my hand.

"Right here, Mr. President."

"Nice to meet you, Commander." I nodded and gave him a salute. After we discussed the plan, we were being led into a meeting room where our assignment will be discussed. Once we arrived in the room, we got quickly down to business.

"Since Naval Intelligence is here under Lieutenant Rollins command, you are to report to her after this assignment is done. I expect you all will do this well, and serve this country justice. Am I clear gentlemen?" He asked all of us.

"Yes, sir." We all replied in the same confident tone, and he smiled.

"Good, if there aren't any further ques-" He was cut off by a member of the secret service looking scared and quickly ran into the room. We were all shocked by the sudden interruption, but we waited until he gave us any more instructions, so we could leave and get started.

"Mr. President, I am afraid to inform you that the World Trade Center: North Tower, had been crashed into." This interruption had put us all in an unstable mindset.

**I will be going on my Reserve Drill this weekend, so I will try and get the next part to this chapter sometime this week. Thanks for reading and don't forget to review! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**15 April 2014**

**Chapter 5 (Part 2 of 2)**

**Author's Note: **Thanks for all of the lovely reviews, enjoy this chapter!

**Warning: **The following content will include acts of violence and terrorism. Be mindful that although the event is a tragedy and happened in reality, the plot of this story is purely fictional. My parts are counter-acted as if Steve and Catherine had actually witnessed this terrible day.

**Disclaimer:** All rights reserved for NBC.

_**Disclosure: **This chapter is dedicated to my older brother who was a Navy SEAL, he was killed in action on a special ops mission back in 2006. I have been to many military funerals, but I have never thought I would be going to my own brother's. I was 19 years old at the time, and he was 28. I remember I was in my boot camp class at Annapolis, and I had gotten a call down to the Chief's office, after I heard the news, I literally broke down in tears. The chief had also trained my brother back at Annapolis, it was quite devastation for him as well. My parents were in the Navy, so was my brother, and I'm currently in the Reserves._

_This chapter is also dedicated to the ones in service, former members of the armed forces, and those who died in service. Most importantly – the victims of 9-11. _

_P.S: There's not that much dialogue in this chapter, just a lot of insight of what Steve is feeling, and how he deals with this situation. Speech at the end belongs to the President of the United States at the time the event had happened._

* * *

"_Mr. President, I am afraid to inform you that the World Trade Center: North Tower, had been crashed into."_

This sudden news had put all of them into shock mode. None of them had bothered to move an inch. The President had almost passed out from the news that he was given. Members of SEAL Team 6 were ready to be put into action, ready to be given instructions from the head of all military branches.

"Commander McGarrett, prepare your team for a rescue mission. Get into your uniform, and report to the Pentagon immediately." the President had ordered them. He grabbed one of the telephones in the conference room, and spoke to the headquarters at the Pentagon.

"Inform everyone of the current news, be advised that this might be a national threat. I want the Army and Naval troops at the Washington D.C Bases to be ready. Commander McGarrett of SEAL Team 6 will be there shortly. SEAL Team 2 had already been informed, and ready to go." He said calmly into the phone. The government had been trained to be prepared for any kinds of threats, and this surely might be one of them.

"Sir, the second tower had just been hit. This is an act of terrorism. Members of Al-Queda had been rumoured to be on those planes. We need to act now." the Vice President said walking into the conference room.

"Commander, you need to leave now. I called headquarters, there are aircraft systems already waiting for you at base. We have no time to waste, I believe in you. The Army and Air Force base had already been informed. You are to report to the Pentagon, and Lieutenant Rollins of Naval Intelligence will assist you in the rescue mission." He told the team. They had all saluted and were ready to get into action.

McGarrett's clan had gotten out of their uniforms and into their combat gear. All of them were set with protective gear, and all of the other equipment. SEAL teams had been trained for this kind of situation, but had never actually been in one. Steve thought about Catherine, she was safe at headquarters. Hoping that whoever planning these attacks will not target the most important symbol that represents the military. There was a truck in front of the building ready to transport them to headquarters. Steve commanded his team to get into the vehicle as fast as they can. The drive to the Pentagon was only ten minutes, but it was ten minutes too long. They reported to the Navy sector of the building, and they were given the instructions. He saw Catherine in the Intelligence area, and he walked over there.

"Lieutenant Rollins, I believe you will be instructing us." He called out. She stood up from her desk, and saluted him. Steve was ready to hug her and tell her that everything was going to get taken care of, but they were in front of many Navy personnel.

"Yes, Commander McGarrett. The helo is waiting for you outside of this sector. We will be able to contact you over satellite, and the radio will be always at connection. We will provide you insight of the location, and where to report first." She said in a business tone. She grabbed the mics that had been set to the frequency they were on, and handed it to each one of the team.

"Thank you, Lieutenant." He told her. When no one was looking, he placed a kiss on her forehead, and she was comforted immediately. He also gave her a quick hug, surely enough nobody had cared for their actions because of the situation.

"Be safe, Commander. I'll see you soon." She smiled at him, and they departed ways. She knew that was a possible chance that the terrorists could be planning another attack, but she also knew that Steve will get everyone safe and sound. She knew that there could be a chance that he could never come home, but she didn't let that be her worry. She thought about the possible outcomes, there's a lot could happen in just a day.

Steve led his team into the helo's and giving them instructions. They were to HALO jump out of the aircrafts and into the affected areas. They were to get the victims out of harm's way, and get them to safety as soon as possible. He gave them other instructions, and everyone started to put their air gear on and set. The travel time was approximately one hour to the world trade center, by helo. Futhermore, they were going to be given a set of commands from HQ, and do everything precisely. SEAL Teams two and six were to take out the targets immediately, if HQ had located them already. By the time they had arrived at the outskirts of the center, Steve prepped his team for their HALO, until he received an incoming voice on his radio.

"_Commander, the Pentagon was just hit."_ It wasn't Catherine, it was someone else. They had targeted the Pentagon briefly after the towers had been hit. Whoever hijacked the planes had been targeting national symbols of their nations, and it was too late to stop them. Steve let out a sigh and informed everyone of the recent update, before jumping out of the plane in approximately twenty minutes, they all had put their right hand on their hearts and called out a silent prayer to the victims that had recently lost their lives. Not realizing that it wasn't Catherine who informed in, he replies back to the voice.

"Sir, is everyone okay?" He asked. He hoped no one was hit, just mentally hoping that the branch centers who had military personnel working, weren't struck at all.

"_Commander, the first sector of the building had been hit first. No signs of victims alive right now. The Navy, Army, and Air force command centers were not affected at all."_ the voice on the other end said.

"Is everyone of the Navy safe, sir?" Steve asked again. He hadn't received a personal text from Catherine just yet, and he was worried about her. _What if she walking through the halls of that sector?_He thought.

"_Yes, everyone is here."_ This reply made Steve's heart go at ease. No longer was he feeling adrenaline pumping up his body, all he felt was calmness. "Can I talk to Lieutenant Rollins, please?" Steve asked. He heard rumbling on the other line, and heard a female voice come through the speakers of his radio.

"Cath, are you okay? Is everything okay?" He asked worriedly.

"_Yes, I'm fine, Steve. I'm just emotionally drained. This day couldn't have gotten any worse. First the world trade center and now the military headquarters. All of the sectors are currently out of power. We're using whatever we have to help you guys out."_ She said. She had fatigue in her tone of voice, he could tell by the way she was speaking. He was emotionally drained as well, plus - this wasn't how he pictured his first meeting with the President. The teams were a bit shaken up after the news. He cried for the personnel at the Trade Center, the victims had families. The firefighters and police officers were probably giving all the help they could, they could lose their lives as well. Before he could reply to Catherine, the pilot had cut him off.

"Commander, 9 minutes until target." The pilot had informed him. He nodded and prepared for jump starts.

"Thanks, Cath, for the update. We're almost at the trade center, so I'll see you soon, okay?"

"_You got it, sailor. Oh, and Steve, don't forget that you did everything you could, alright?"_ He knew exactly what she meant by that. It was the situation at hand, if they couldn't get what they needed to do in time, then that's all they could do. There was no way of changing it. He put his radio in his tag bag, and prepared his men for the jump. They all huddled around for a quick oversee and a briefing, they all replied with a loud and confident, 'hoo-yah', back to their commanding officer. They prepared their stance for the HALO jump, and Steve counted off a 'jump on three'. After those three counts were done, they flew into the air, and was ready to activate the parachutes once at low-altitude. Steve saw the sight in front of him, they were very close to the center, and all he could see was peril. The two buildings were tarnished on the ground. A straight of fire and burning flames were surrounding the area. It wasn't a horrible sight to see. They landed safely on a target set for them, and they were ready in action.

-H50-

It was a painful sight. People crying, they were hurt, damaged, no one could feel what they're feeling, it's unexplainable. Steve tried to find as much people under the fallen debris. In his count, he had only found thirty. Being a trained field medic, he applied his knowledge and checked the pulse of each victim. None. No pulse. No sign that they were alive. He has seen this many times as a Navy SEAL, but never would he think it would be in his own nation. A nation that they were committed to protect her freedom. He felt sorrow, all he could see was the pain all of these people were enduring. He continued though, he continued to search for more. Search for more victims as if they still could be alive. _The twin towers? Why the Pentagon? Why the national symbols? Were the enemies trying to send a message?_

He left his team to find the enemies. According to HQ, the three planes incoming were hijacked by a middle eastern group. Half of his SEAL team correlated with the Intelligence personnel of New York City, and right now, they were doing all they could to find the group that was behind all of this. He and the other half that was behind, formed a rescue squad, and had their medic field kit stringed on their backs. Orders from firefighters came as they part ways. All Steve saw was pain, but he remained strong. He was trained to be able to handle difficult situations, but he could never apply that training – it will always lead back to psychology. Reports came to him as he found out from Catherine that 55 of the military personnel had died at the Pentagon. His brothers and sisters of the armed forces were killed instantly at the nation's symbol.

He continued to search, but the numbers had kept building and building. Three hours had passed, the people that had no sign of a beating heart had added up to a hundred. Soon, that number was going to be up in the high hundreds. He reported to the chief of the fire personnel, one-hundred and fifty two people, from the SEAL rescue crew had counted. 152 people that were mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, and even some military. 152 people that will be added to the number of victims the others had found. 152 people that will never see their families, friends, neighbors, and loved ones again. A man who was injured badly had walked up to him, he had tears strained down his face.

"Sir, please help us. There's at least fifteen people where we were in a safe location." He felt sorry for the man. He was wearing business attire, meaning that he was an office personnel. Steve nodded to the man and he lead Steve to where they were. They were trapped in the closet of the bottom floor of a building that was yards away from the first tower. When he looked inside the closet, all he saw was blood.

"This is Commander McGarrett. We are a few hundred yards away north of the first tower. I need back up and medics. There are about fifteen victims trapped here." Steve spoke into his radio, and he waited for a response from anyone.

"_Commander, we are about three minutes away from your location. We have three medics, and 2 members of SEAL team two." _Lieutenant Freddy Waters spoke into the radio. As he waited for back up, he tried to get the victims out of the tiny closet. Debris had fell into the first floor, and he tried to get as much as he could out of his way. He checked the pulse of each, seven were alive, others were dead from lack of oxygen, and the fallen debris. Steve pulled them out of the building and onto the street. He saw the approaching squad, and let the medics handle the injured but barely breathing victims.

"2,976." Lieutenant Waters said to Steve. Steve knew exactly what he meant. The number had increased rapidly in the passing waters. After a done search, a very unsuccessful search from the Navy side, two-thousand, nine-hundred, and forty-six people had lost their lives today. Lives that were uncertain of next day. He had heard from his buddies that when raiding the second tower debris, they saw cell-phones. Cell-phones of the people who were calling and texting their families, their final 'I love you,'. He sat back on the flight back to headquarters and ready to see Catherine, just to hug her and never let her go. He thought of those people who passed in such a horrible days. After a de-briefing session with his fellow military and law enforcement: 2,749 people died at the world trade center, including citizens from 87 different countries. 343 were New York City firemen. 84 were port authority employees, of whom 37 were police. Another 23, were New York City Police. But only 20 people were pulled out alive. At the pentagon, he reported that 55 had died on impact of the plane that crashed. Altogether, 3,031 people died on this fateful day.

It was already night time, they had gotten a hotel in Washington D.C, and the visiting officers had resided there for the night, tomorrow they were to leave back to base. Steve saw Catherine in the front lobby, and just ran into her arms. He comforted her, and she cried. The people surrounding them had noticed the couple standing in the lobby, in light of the recent events, the two people in military uniforms, currently hugging, must have meant a lot to each other. She cried into his shoulders, he broke away and took her hand and led theirselves to their hotel room. Steve changed into a pair of sweatpants and his Navy sweatshirt, he sat on the bed and waited for Catherine to join him. He managed to turn on TV, he wanted to know what was the reaction of many. Catherine laid next to him on the bed, and snuggled into his arms. They hadn't said anything ever since they got back to each other, silence was comfortable, nothing had to be said. Hearing the news reporter talking to the person on the other half, the President had decided to address the nation this night:

"_Good evening. Today, our fellow citizens, our way of life, our very freedom came under attack in a series of deliberate and deadly terrorist acts. The victims were in airplanes, or in their offices; secretaries, businessmen and women, military and federal workers; moms and dads, friends and neighbours. Thousands of lives were suddenly ended by evil, despicable acts of terror. The pictures of airplanes flying into buildings, fires burning, huge structures collapsing, have filled us with disbelief, terrible sadness, and a quiet, unyielding anger. These acts of mass murder were intended to frighten our nation into chaos and retreat. But they have failed; our country is strong._

_A great people has been moved to defend a great nation. Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shattered steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve. America was targeted for attack because we're the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world. And no one will keep that light from shining. Today, our nation saw evil, the very worst of human nature. And we responded with the best of America - with the daring of our rescue workers, with the caring for strangers and neighbours who came to give blood and help in any way they could. Immediately following the first attack, I implemented our government's emergency response plans. Our military is powerful, and it's prepared. _

_Our emergency teams are working in New York City and Washington, D.C. to help with local rescue efforts. Our first priority is to get help to those who have been injured, and to take every precaution to protect our citizens at home and around the world from further attacks. The functions of our government continue without interruption. Federal agencies in Washington which had to be evacuated today are reopening for essential personnel tonight, and will be open for business tomorrow. Our financial institutions remain strong, and the American economy will be open for business, as well. The search is underway for those who are behind these evil acts. I've directed the full resources of our intelligence and law enforcement communities to find those responsible and to bring them to justice. We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them._

_I appreciate so very much the members of Congress who have joined me in strongly condemning these attacks. And on behalf of the American people, I thank the many world leaders who have called to offer their condolences and assistance. America and our friends and allies join with all those who want peace and security in the world, and we stand together to win the war against terrorism. _

_Tonight, I ask for your prayers for all those who grieve, for the children whose worlds have been shattered, for all whose sense of safety and security has been threatened. And I pray they will be comforted by a power greater than any of us, spoken through the ages in Psalm 23: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me." This is a day when all Americans from every walk of life unite in our resolve for justice and peace. America has stood down enemies before, and we will do so this time. None of us will ever forget this day. Yet, we go forward to defend freedom and all that is good and just in our world."_

3, 031 people had died.

_**September 11, 2001 – Never forget.**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 6**

**Date Started: 17 April**

**Date Finished: 25 April**

**Author's Note:** I absolutely love the feedback from the last chapter you guys left. I deeply appreciate the wonderful comments and things you've said. In this chapter, we will jump 5 years into their relationship. This will be the final time jump for a very long time, from this jump, a lot of things start to establish within their relationship. (Hint, we will eventually go back to the 9/11 plot as a flashback sometime in the next few chapters, I will not abandon that storyline completely). Also, Steve and Catherine have a more of a stabilized connection, no other man or woman on the side, and we look further into missing moments from the show.

In this chapter, I will also introduce to you – PTSD: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. My father had it after he was based during the Persian Gulf War. I know PTSD was brought up in the show, but it will take a further toll onto Steve, and for the rest of the story.

I'm also getting re-commissioned into the Navy, after being in the reserves for almost two years. My first deployment will be in January of 2015, hopefully I will finish this story and get a sequel out there :)

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS.

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_**5 years later (2006) – Coronado Naval Base, California**_

It's been five years since everything became serious between Steve and Catherine. Through those five years, they have gotten closer to each other. It's been a tough five years for Steve McGarrett, he acknowledged he had PTSD, something that he found after the 9/11 attacks. It wasn't as serious as he thought it would be, but he was getting better and better each day. His relationship with the young lieutenant had gotten stronger. They've been on and off over the past few years but that hadn't bothered him at all. By this time, he had gotten more and more into the SEALs, he was recognized as the one of the youngest SEALs to be so decorated. In 1992, he had graduated from Annapolis. From there he was recognized as a Naval Intelligence Lieutenant from 1992 to 1997, eventually starting his training as a Navy SEAL, he met his beautiful and young lieutenant – Catherine Rollins.

Steve got out of his dorm bed and started to pack his clothes for his trip back home. Being close with the Rear Admiral and his daughter had it's perks, but of course no favoritism was shown. Admiral Rollins had given him some leave time to visit his father in Hawaii, but with his own favor. The admiral had also wanted Catherine to tag along with him; something about wanting to always visit the state that was off mainland. Steve hadn't mind at all, he could use the company especially if it was Catherine. He had remembered the time when he had a personal meeting with the Admiral.

_After his daily tactics enforcement class, a young ensign had walked into his class and had given him a note. He knew Catherine was in Intelligence, but that was across base. If she wanted to talk to him, she would've came here for lunch. He opened the note, and it was something he hadn't expected. _

_**Commander,**_

_**Meet me in the office at 1200 sharp, not a moment later. We need to have a little chat.**_

_**Admiral**_

_After reading the note he received, he started thinking of all the things that could have cost him his whole entire career. Resulting in nothing, he finally knew what this was about – Catherine. Ever since the word got out about him 'seeing' Catherine, he had found himself in the Admiral's office, and it wasn't always about anything Navy related. He took the note and folded into his flack pocket, then walked a few blocks to main offices. He walked into the building, and found the Admiral's office. He heard him talking on the phone, and just waited until he was done. It was 1159 and he just got there right on time. After he heard the phone down, he knocked on the door. _

"_Glad you followed my orders, Commander." The Admiral didn't bother looking up from his paperwork, Rollins exactly knew his presence was being validated. Admiral Rollins stood up and Steve had saluted him. He was put at ease, and sat down at one of the chairs. It was pure silence for a few moments, until the Admiral had decided to finally talk._

"_McGarrett, I'm sure you know the military protocol for dating subordinates, am I correct?" He asked. He had a serious face, and Steve knew that this was a subject that wasn't taken lightly by the higher-ups. It was strictly prohibited to date someone in their chain of command – but, he was not in Catherine's nor was she in his. He was a Navy SEAL, and she was in Intelligence; they were in two different units, he didn't understand why it was such a big deal, and plus he was only a pay-grade above her. _

"_Aye, sir." _

"_You know my daughter is quite younger than you, I hope you know that she even came to me herself, asking if she were allowed to see a man like you. I know what you do, McGarrett. It isn't a secret. You're a SEAL, sometimes you don't even know if you're coming home." The Admiral pointed out. He was correct, Steve knows how dangerous the operations could be, and it could possibly get you killed. But, he was doing this for his country, not for his self. He thought about the unofficial motto the Navy had adapted, it was true. Every officer in the Navy should know what they're doing and how this has such a great significance to the civilians. _

"_Now, I don't normally approve of the boys Catherine sees, but you're an exception. You have a great record." He was correct at that too, Steve did have a great record for being one of the youngest SEALs ever. "Annapolis grad, five years Intelligence, extraordinary training tactics and command leadership." The Admiral stated. He had pulled up his file from the computer, and read it off to him. The Admiral was impressed – he hasn't seen a young SEAL since back in the day. Steve smiled at him, to be quite honest, he was proud of himself as well. His father hadn't exactly agreed with him in joining the Navy, but he had learned to accept his choices and decisions. _

"_I want you to know that I am going to allow whatever you have with my daughter. If ever do I see a single tear running down her face, or if I ever see PDA among the workplace.. I **will** court-martial you." The Admiral was very intimidating. He stood back up, and lined up with Steve's position. Steve stood up at this, and stared at him._

"_I like you, McGarrett. At first, I didn't want Catherine seeing a Navy man, especially a SEAL. So, you're in great luck, Commander." The Admiral said. Steve knew this man wasn't to be messed with. _

"_Permission to speak freely, sir?" Steve asked. He had something to say, and he didn't want to get in trouble for saying it, especially to a superior._

"_Proceed." _

"_Thank you, sir. Your daughter is old enough to make her own decisions. I know that she's younger than me by three years, but that doesn't make me think any less of her. I care for her, she's one of my closest friends. _

He thought about that day he first met Admiral James Rollins. He was terrified of him, and he had every right to be. He also thought about his relationship with Catherine. Yes, they were on and off, but whatever they had was great. It didn't need to be labeled or anything. Steve has had trust issues ever since he left Hawaii. His mother died in a car crash, his father still digging into the case – if that was really the cause of his mother's death. His father... he was a member of the Honolulu Police Department ; a well respected person to be exact. His sister, Mary-Ann, had been shipped to somewhere in the country, but he had no clue. He hasn't been in contact with his sister ever since he left for the Navy.

Getting his clothes and necessities packed, he locked up his room, and head for Bunker Hall; the girls dormitory. They were to be traveling by military transport on a civilian plane, that was the arrangement from the Admiral himself. It wasn't too bad, but it was faster travel time. He picked up his pace, and head to the floor where Catherine's room was on. He knocked on the door, and waited a few seconds until she could open it.

"Hey, Lieutenant." Steve said with a bright smile on his face. He placed his hands in his camouflage pant pockets, and waited for her reply.

"Hey, Commander." She placed a light kiss on his cheek, and invited him in.

_-H50-_

Done and ready, the two had arrived at the San Diego International Airport. If anyone was observing, the two officers in military uniform traveling together, must have meant a lot to each other; and this time, they were correct. Steve took Catherine's hand into his, and made their way to plane security. The both of them showed their Navy credentials, and passed security with flying colors. Steve took Catherine's bags for her, and placed it in the compartment above them. Catherine had took the window seat, and Steve plopped down right next to him. He grabbed his hand in hers, and gave her a small smile. The plane had taken off, and were currently above in the air.

"Steve, tell me about your family." Catherine hastily whispered. Steve's eyes widened, in the time he has known Catherine, he had rarely told her about his family. Since they had a duration of five hours until they arrived in Hawaii, he might as well tell her a little bit.

"My father's John McGarrett, he's a police officer for Honolulu. Before my mother passed away, they were in love. I could see it in his eyes. My mom died when I was sixteen, she got hit by a drunk driver." Steve was getting quiet at this point. Catherine noticed how the tone of his voice changed, she rubbed her thumb over his hand to comfort him.

"Anyways, my dad and I were very close. But, ever since my mom died, it's never been the same. By the time I was 16, I wanted to become a cop..just like my dad. He didn't want me to, though. I accepted it, and decided to go with my next choice – the Navy. Although it was a second option, it has been the best decision I have ever made. If I hadn't joined the Navy, I wouldn't be the person I am today, I wouldn't be serving as a SEAL, and most of all, I wouldn't have met you." From that confession, Steve turned his head to look at Catherine, he grabbed her face with his free hand for a kiss. Catherine let go for air after a few seconds, and took a deep breath and let out.

"Mind if I change the topic?" Steve asked. He wanted to know why she had broken up with him over letter all those years ago. He wanted to know why they've been taking breaks over the course of five years. She nodded for him to proceed.

"When I was on one of my first missions as a SEAL, I remember we kept sending letters to stay in touch. Why all of a sudden, did you stop and sent that one letter that changed everything?"

Catherine noticed some of the hesitation in his voice. She remembered those letters. She was the one to first break it off for them. It was a casual relationship, no harm was done, but she didn't know how it had taken a toll on Steve.

_I want you to know about how much fun I've had with you for the past three years. You're my best friend, Steve. I don't know what I'd do without you. Super SEAL, I can't handle what we call a relationship. I wish you'd get your priorities straight. I know your job, I know what you do, and it's dangerous. We all know that. Sometimes I can't help to be affected by it. I know you're gone constantly gone on missions, but it's hurting me, Steve. We don't even have a label on our relationship. I wish I would've told you all of this in person, I just couldn't bare to see your face. I've been wanting to tell you ever since you left for this mission, but I think we should see other people for a while. I want us to take a break. We're new in the Navy, and we have lots of opportunities constantly being thrown at us, and I want us to make the decisions and sacrifices that it deserves. I know it's hard, and I bet you're a bit mad once you read this part. I think it's for the best for now, Steve. You mean a lot to me, Sailor. Don't ever forget that. I want us still to be friends. I want us to have dinners and whenever we have leave we could meet somewhere, but as far as boyfriend/girlfriend stuff, I'd rather not cross that road again. One day, I want to be able to be called your girlfriend, it's just a matter of you. It's all up to you, Steven J. McGarrett. If we ever suddenly see each other, I don't want it to be awkward. I hope you want us to remain friends. Your friendship means a whole lot to me. Like I said, it's all up to you._

The last paragraph of that letter had been the one to change everything. She remembered the words she has written on that piece of paper.

"You know I was pretty broken up, right?" Steve said, after a few moments of silence. He noticed she probably was thinking about that specific letter.

"I know you don't come see me as a big softie, but that last quarter of that mission.. my mind was focused purely on you. Yes, I was mad at first; but I knew the reality of the situation. My job is hard and it's going to take me everywhere around the world, and you as well. We both can go without seeing each other for months, it's happened before. I bet you're tired of the inconsistency of our relationship, I kind of am, too. But, I need you in my life, Catherine. I can never live without you." These words had shocked Catherine. It wasn't all of the time he had let his emotions show. SEALs were trained to hide what they were feeling, it was a part of their first lesson in their training. She thought about the people she sort of saw whenever he and her were on break. She remembered going out with a fellow comrade of his – Billy Harrington. She liked Billy, but he wasn't Steve. They were often stationed in the same location; SEAL team two was mostly the tech team, and they needed Intelligence to back them up. She remembered trying to forget about Steve whenever she was with Billy. But it simply just didn't work out for her.

"I'm sorry about that, Steve. I never meant to hurt you. I was being delusional at the time, I let other things in my way. Can we just forget that letter was ever written?" She pleaded. She didn't want that letter brought up anymore, it was a part of the past. She was ready to let go of that part, most specifically. Instead of replying, he nodded his head, and she took it as that. It was 0200, their flight had been late at night, and they were about an hour in. Catherine decided this was the perfect time to catch some shut-eye, they had about four hours left before they reached Honolulu. Catherine got a little bit more comfortable in her seat, and leaned her head onto Steve's shoulder. Steve looked at the sleeping beauty on his shoulder, it was quick for her to pass out; he placed a soft kiss on her forehead, and shifted a little to get comfortable as well.

_-H50-_

Four hours had passed by quickly, an airplane hostess had walked up and down the isle to grab the attention of the passengers. Steve was a light sleeper, and heard the footsteps of heels clicking, he took this as a sign that the plane was ready to touchdown. He awoke from his nap, and took a look out the window that was peering bright sunlight. He lightly shook Catherine, and informed her that they were about seven minutes away from landing. She looked out the window and saw the beautiful islands of Hawaii. It was clearly morning, and she could see the bright glow of the Pacific Ocean. She was amazed by the view, she had never been stationed in Hawaii, she kind of is hoping one day she will take her last tour as an officer, and settle down in Hawaii. Steve looked out as well; this was home to him. Home as in where he grew up, he went to the local high school, and there he had broke records as a rising football champion. All the memories had come rushing down to him all at once as he looked outside the window with Catherine.

"Aloha, ladies and gentleman. It's seven o' clock in the morning, and we have reached our destination here in Honolulu, Hawaii. Hope you enjoy your stay at this wonderful island, and thank you for choosing _Delta Airlines_." The pilot announced through the PA speakers. The plane finally arrived at its hangar, and passengers were ready to ready to get off the plane. Being in the military, they had been apart of the first class cabin, and got the chance to leave right away. Steve got their luggage out of the compartment and he and Catherine unboarded the plane. His father had somehow reached out to him, and alerted his airline that he will be waiting at their arrival gate. He followed the instructions from one of the hostess, and lead Catherine to where his father would be waiting. Seeing a man he could recognize from miles away, Steve tapped the man on the back, and was greeted by a welcoming hug.

"Hi, dad."

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**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Sorry it was such a long wait, I've had a busy week, especially since I have to train four days a week, work my civilian job, and pick up Naval studies. My R&R is every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and this means I write and add each night, revise and edit Thursday nights, and post a new chapter the latest - Friday nights.**

**If you haven't followed me on Twitter yet, please do - Ltjayedze . I'll be tweeting spoilers for upcoming chapters and having the chance to talk to some of my fellow McRoll shippers. If you haven't heard already, there's going to be a sequel! There's a promotional cover on my twitter page, so check it out! More details will be come every week :)**

**Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave a review. I'd love to hear some feedback! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 7**

**Date Started:** 26 April

**Date Finished: **28 April

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all of the positive feedback! How many of you enjoyed 4x20? I really loved it; probably one of the best patriotic episodes of the show. The ending scene where Danny and Steve visit the Veterans hospital was really emotional. I could tell Steve was thinking pretty deep when he walked in there. I've had my fair share of visiting Veteran Hospitals – I can never forget how emotional I get whenever I see soldiers, sailors, and airmen in life-threatening conditions. I've seen our people have one arm, one leg, or even no legs at all. I opted out of working at a Naval Hospital, because honestly, I'll end up crying.

But anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! It's very light hearted and humorous, hope it makes you smile. You'll also see a softer side of Steve, something we don't get to see very often on the show. But remember that this is before 5-0 even happens, so keep in mind while you're reading this story. We're very close to present day, but we still have a few more years to cover.

**Dedication: **To LuckyPhamStar22, she was one of the first reviewers for this story. This is my little belated birthday gift to her. She asked me so many questions about how the US Military works, and I could answer them to the best of my ability. She had always kept me writing at my toes, and she's such a sweetheart. Thanks to the lovely lady who's keeping me inspired for this story :)

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for NBC.

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**Hawaii**

After a warm welcome from Steve's father, they were brought back to the McGarrett home. Catherine loved the interaction between the father and son, it was very heartwarming for her. Steve introduced her in such a special way, she was blushing the whole entire time. She wasn't even meant to go on this trip with Steve, but she's glad she had the opportunity to go with him anyways.

_Catherine stood behind the little reunion Steve and his father were having. She kind of felt awkward being there, but that feeling soon went away. Steve grabbed her arm and pulled her towards his father. _

"_Dad, this is Lieutenant Catherine Rollins." Steve introduced her. She sort of felt special whenever he used her ranking in phrases like these. _

"_Hello, sir. It's nice meeting you." She held her hand out, but instead the forsaken handshake was turned into a hug from the older McGarrett. She returned the hug, and the man put her down._

"_Enough with the proper etiquette, you can call me John, Ms. Rollins." Steve and the rest of them had proceeded to the car that was waiting outside of the terminal. While walking, John had spoken up._

"_So, I'm assuming you're my son's girlfriend?" Steve and Catherine stopped in their tracks. They both looked at each other, and decided Catherine should be the one to answer him. _

"_If you say so. Your son's quite the charmer, Mr. McGarrett." _

Arriving at the McGarrett home, Steve led her into the upper part of the house, and showed her around. She sort of felt at home, she took a look at the surroundings, and saw how cozy the home was. She saw pictures of when Steve was younger, growing up, teenage years, and some of his high school images. A particular one had caught her eye. When Steve wasn't looking, she picked up a picture frame of a teenage Steve in a football jersey, and him holding a football.

"You were a football player?" Catherine asked. It was another thing she didn't know about the Commander. Steve turned around and smiled at the picture she had picked up.

"Yeah, star quarterback." Steve glanced at the photo and thought back to his high school days.

"_Wow, _heart-breaker much, smoothdog?" She teased. Over her years in the Navy, _everyone_ knew about Steve McGarrett. His comrades would call him smoothdog, because he had a personality that would be very slick. He was attractive, witty, and intelligent; he basically had the whole package. But she saw further than what's being shown. She has seen the side where he would release his true feelings and emotions – that was the real Steve McGarrett.

"You gotta bring the nick name back, Cath?" He joked.

"You know it, sailor." She winked. Steve grabbed her hand and led him into his room. His room had looked like he never left. Everything was still in place, and all his memorabilia was still hanging on the wall beside his bed. Small, but cozy enough to fit Steve. Catherine took a look around the tiny bedroom. It didn't have much displayed, but it described the simple person Steve was. He closed the door behind him and set their bags in a spot near his dresser. Catherine took a seat onto his bed and plopped onto it, lying down. About to close her eyes, Steve climbed on top of her and started to remove the buttons of her uniform jacket. He shifted all of his weight onto his arms, and placed light feather-like kisses onto her neck. She let out a brief moan, but realizing what he's about to do, she lightly pinched his right arm bicep.

"Really, Steve?" She asked. They were acting like a high school couple, where the boyfriend was about to get some for the day.

"What?" He replied nonchalantly. He gave her a face that made her chuckle. He plopped down right next to her and the both of them stared at the ceiling.

She let out a small laugh, and turned her head towards his, "I don't know what's funnier.. the fact that your father is downstairs and the fact that you just tried to seduce me. Tell me, commander."

"Cath, _honey_, I haven't gotten 'some' in almost a day. Yes, we did have our play time before we left the base, but we're in Hawaii now." He paused for dramatic effect, "Oh, and why not take advantage of it? Maybe we could even make out in the backseat of my old man's car." He smirked. Catherine slapped his arm in return, and he feigned hurt.

"Okay, sailor, I think it's time for you to rest. You're a bit too snarky for my liking right now." She looked up at him, gave a cheeky smile, and patted him on the shoulder. She stood up to walk over where her luggage was placed, and grabbed a pair of sweatpants, and saw a SEAL shirt that was hanging out of Steve's bag, she quickly grabbed it along with her sweats.

"Steve, where's your bathroom?" She asked.

"Down the hall- wait, why don't you just change here? You know I've seen you naked plenty of times." Steve was on the ball. He has made so many comments, that Catherine had to fight the urge to punch him in the face. She realized that he was tired, hence the attitude and wacky personality.

"You know what? I cannot deal with you right now. I'm going to take a shower, and then we can talk about your little 'tude later, okay sailor?"

"Lieutenant, I believe that's not the way to talk to your superiors. I can have you court martialled for such unacceptable tone of voice." Steve joked, putting on his tone that he uses with his team. He grabbed her arm before letting her out of the door, and turned her around. He placed a kiss on her lips, and she gladly obliged. She pushed him away after a few moments, and he acted hurt.

"Fine, fine. Take your shower. I'm going to get changed, and I'll be in bed waiting for you." He winked at her, and she stuck her tongue out at him and gave him a mean face. He chuckled, and grabbed some comfort wear: a pair of sweatpants and one of his SEAL tank tops, after realizing Catherine had taken one of his shirts. He got dressed, and got under the comforters of his bed. He thought about a few things that had changed ever since he's gotten closer to Catherine. At his dormitory in Coronado, he framed a picture of him and Catherine taking some leave time off the base at one of the beaches in San Diego. One of his buddies, Sam, had caught a candid photo of Catherine riding on Steve's back on the shoreline. Catherine was caught trying to kiss his cheek, and he had been smiling at her. Sam at the time thought it was a great photo op, and took it on the camera. Sam showed the picture to him, and Steve immediately wanted a copy of it and wanted it to be framed. It was one of his favorite pictures. He also thought back to the time where he and Catherine had been caught showing PDA at the work place. Steve was doing an intelligence op, and he was with Catherine's unit. They were doing some de-briefing, and he placed a light squeeze on one of Catherine's butt cheek. The commanding officer at the time, saw the sign of affection, and had to call Steve on the spot. There were plenty of other times he and Catherine had the best moments. She was his best friend and he tried to think of several times where she had saved his life when on a special mission.

He remembered the time where they first met. His team had gone to a club near the academy – he had gotten word from his CO to be admitted to drinking that night – and he saw a beautiful lady standing just a few yards away from him. He had been watching her all night, she was alone and with her friends, but she didn't seem like she was enjoying it. It was almost every once a month the midshipmen and plebes were able to go around Annapolis, and not always be cooped up at the academy. He was still in intelligence at the time, and he had gathered up all his courage to ask her to dance with him. She denied him several times, but he finally caught the chance where she said yes. He was 20 and she was 17 still training in Intelligence. They weren't in the same unit, but he was a technician, and she was the expertise who carried out information. She finally danced with him, and that led to them having their first time together in a supply closet of the club. It wasn't exactly the best setting for such acts, but he was fazed and so was she; they needed to get rid of that sexual tension. They headed back to base separately, and he the next time he saw her was at a training session for their office. He wanted to spend time with her more, but she made it clear to him at the time, that it was only a one night stand, and nothing further. It made him quite disappointed at first, but he kept on convincing her that they didn't need to have any strings attached, or any label on their relationship. She obliged and eventually – without either of them realizing it – it had became more that 'friends with benefits'. It had led to dinners on base, finding each other in the same the morning after, which quite frankly, they almost got court martial for. But, he got some leniency. His teammates would often call him 'smooth dog' due to his slick ways of getting with a specific woman. And in this case, it was Catherine. He hadn't been with any other girl since they started seeing each other. Disrupted from his thoughts, he felt the bed move, and saw Catherine fully clothed and trying to get close to him. He smirked at her appearance; her hair was blow dried, and she was wearing a Navy capri sweats, and his t-shirt, it was hanging pretty big on her. She climbed in bed next to him, and she cuddled in his arms. She placed her hand on his chest, and she breathed in the air.

"Hey sailor, have you cooled your mind?" She asked. He was pretty suggestive after they went to his room. He was tired, and he was needing to rid that feeling at the bottom of his stomach. "Sure, you still up for some fun?" he wiggled his eyebrows at her. He sat up from the bed, and climbed on top of Catherine. She nodded, and felt the arousal that was rubbing against the fabric of the pant. He took off his shirt and threw it somewhere on the ground.

It was a couple hours later, Steve and Catherine had fallen asleep after a few rounds of it. He had tried his best to keep her quiet, because they suddenly remembered that John McGarrett was currently downstairs in his study. He was about to almost ductape her mouth shut, if she wouldn't contain her moans and the amount of expletives that were coming from her mouth. They were old enough, and they weren't teenagers anymore, but his father was just a floor below them, and he thought right if John could hear the bed shaking from above. He had woken up from their slumber at 1600, and Catherine was still deep asleep. He got out of the bed, placed a kiss on Catherine's forehead, and went to grab his shirt and sweatpants that were thrown somewhere. After a final look at his girl, he walked out of his room and went downstairs to go talk to his father. Reaching his study, he knocked on the door, and John had told him to come in. He was about to speak until his father had silenced him. He took a seat at one of the chairs, and waited for him to talk.

"If you thought I was here during your _activities_, you thought wrong. I was about done with my shift at HPD, before I had to pick you guys up. So I dropped you off here, grabbed a cup of coffee, and went back to work. And when I came home, I did indeed hear the bed shaking. You might want to tone it down a bit, son." the older McGarrett had caused Steve to blush. "Sorry, dad." he replied.

After writing a few things down on his report, John had finally asked him the question he's been wanting to ask, ever since they arrived in Hawaii.

"So, who is she?" Steve was taken aback at the question. "Wait, what do you mean?" He didn't quite understand what his father was trying to get at.

"Who is she to _you? _I meant." His father clarified. To be honest, he didn't know what he and Catherine were specifically called.

"She's everything, dad. She's my best friend. I don't know what I would do with out her. She's comforted me when I couldn't sleep at night after missions. Her unit had always backed my team and I on special ops, and she's always been there for me." He paused, saw his father drop his pen and listen in closely, then Steve continued. "Catherine's a great girl dad, I honestly don't know where I'd be without her by my side."

"Then don't let her go, Steve. I know things were pretty rough before you left for boot camp, but you're still my son. I know it hasn't been the same since your mother died, but I'll always be the father you've always had. Remember that." His father smiled at him, and he returned it. Yes, things haven't been the same since his mother passed, but he was working on bettering the relationship with his father; so far, he was on the right track.

"Tell me about her." His father insisted, and he nodded.

"She's Naval Intelligence expertise. She's smart, beautiful, and a sweet woman." His father didn't take that as an answer, and squinted his eyes at Steve.

"Let me guess, her father is at the top of the chain?" His father questioned.

"Rear Admiral James Rollins." Steve answered. His dad nodded and smirked at his son.

"I'm assuming you've had your fair share of visiting his office?" Steve chuckled at this and nodded. He did have his fair share of visiting the Admiral's office. For work relations and the relationship with his daughter.

"Have you told her I served with her father?" His father turned serious at this. Both of their father's during the same time. They were former comrades, and they served the Vietnam and Korean war together. Admiral Rollins was surprised at the fact that his daughter was seeing his former teammate's son. John McGarrett retired after being diagnosed with PTSD.

"No, but I will soon. The Admiral would like to see you soon though." Steve confessed. He did need to tell Catherine though. He only found out that their fathers had served when the Admiral had come to talk to him a few months prior to this visit.

John nodded, and studied his son's face. He looked more maturer and older after being in the Navy for almost ten years. He wasn't surprised though, he knew the military sorta straightens you out after a while. And it was true, before he left for boot camp and basic training at Annapolis, he still looked like the 18 year old that just graduated high school with all honors and was the quarterback. Steve was smart as well, he wasn't like any other students. He had priorities set each year of schooling. His top areas that he mostly majored in at Annapolis was Chemistry and Calculus. He also knew that his son studied various languages that would benefit him in the future as a sailor. He knew that Steve had contracted to study basic medical training. Steve informed him that he was a field medic during missions and that he knew the things that would sure be needed. He knew Steve studied basic Mandarin, Russian, and French. Steve had kept in contact with him by writing letters and the occasional phone calls, but he was sure to be proud of his son's accomplishments and that he hadn't put his intelligence to waste.

"Dad, how are things going with HPD?" Steve questioned. Last he's heard from his dad and his job was that John was trying to reopen the case of his mother's death. He had been following leads for almost ten years, but it hadn't led him anywhere yet.

"Like you, I can't talk about certain things. But, I can tell you that I was given the jurisdiction to reopen your mother's case. I've been working with Duke and Duke only, to find clues and missing evidence that we could've misssed. I can't trust many people at HPD. There's some moles in the department, and I really do not want to find myself having a meeting with IA." Steve nodded at this. He was happy that maybe his father could find the closure to his mother's death, but this could also be hazardous. In a letter his father had sent him back when he was at Annapolis, he found out that his mother was indeed not killed by a drunk driver and not even a car accident was mentioned in the report. His father had been trying to cover it up. All he knew that his father was hiding someone, and he also knew that his mother's death was not an accident. He was mad at John for that, for telling his 16 year old self that his mom had been killed in a vehicle accident. But finding out almost a decade later that that wasn't the truth had made him mad. Hell, he was still mad. He wasn't mad at his father for not telling the truth, but for keeping it a secret from him for such a long time. He was about to reply, but the door was suddenly being opened.

"Hi Steve, hey Mr. McGarrett. Sorry for interrupting, but would you like me to make all of us some dinner tonight?" Catherine had woken up, and after not finding Steve beside her, she had decided to search for him, and found him in a deep conversation with his father.

"Catherine, please call me John. And that would be great, sweetie." John smiled at the lady his son was seeing. He definitely could tell that she was in for the long-haul, and that they were truly, madly, and deeply in love with each other, but neither of them didn't want to admit it. Catherine's eyes twinkled, and she walked away ready to prepare dinner. John stood up from his seat and was ready to head out of his study, until he turned to look at his son who was following him suite.

"She's a keeper, Steve."

* * *

_**Two days later...**_

It was their last day in Hawaii, and they were to be leaving at the crack of dawn the next morning. Prior, Steve and John had taken Catherine to various places that were a must-visit during their stay in Hawaii. The day after their arrival, John had taken them hiking up a certain point that he had taken Steve was a child. They saw the gorgeous view from the mountain point and the petrographic that were carved in the stones while hiking. Of course, Steve had injured himself, and were in need of medical attention. His arm had gotten stuck on a branch, and the sharp branch had cut through his skin pretty deeply. He had to use cloth that was in his sea bag, and wrap it up very gently. John and Catherine had tried to find the best signal possible and found a spot that up at the top. A MedEvac Army copter had picked all of them up, and brought them to the Tripler Army Hospital. Their hike had gone wrong, and Steve was stitched up for the deep cut he received.

The next day, Steve had brought Catherine to some private places. He brought her to a spot out in the woods. There they had a intimate lunch date, where he fed her sushi that was available on the island. Later on that day, Steve had gotten Catherine some new jewelry – something she really deserved after all these years. They noticed their anniversary of first meeting was coming close, and Steve decided to buy her a gift. He bought her a charm bracelet, and each year from this day onward, he would present to her a new charm to add on. He bought nine charms for nine years of knowing each other. One of the first charms she received, was an anchor. They were both in the Navy, and were always home to protecting the waters of their country. It would also symbolize the weight that will weighing the both of them together. Things will get rough, but there will always be an unknown force that will bring them back to each other. The second charm was a plane. It symbolizes his SEAL missions. He will be jumping off planes and off on a special op, but he would make sure that he flew back home with the rest of his team. The third charm was something they had both experience. A building. There wasn't a charm for two buildings, but this one would suffice. This third charm represents 9-11. He was commanded by the president to take heed of the situation and be a part of the rescue teams that will be in service during that tragic day. It also shows that even though Catherine was not there in person, she had experienced the plane hitting a sector of the pentagon. It will also show that their service means a lot to the people of their country. From national threats to aiding disaster areas, they will always serve, fight, and protect their country. The fourth charm as a piece of paper and pencil. When he was deployed or when she was somewhere out on the sea, they keep in contact by writing letters to each other. The other charms were history, the small things that represented their relationship.

And today, he and Catherine will be spending the day at one of the island's most beautiful beaches – Lanikai Beach of Oahu. The both of them were used to swimming in deep waters, and this was his chance to see his girl surf the waves of Hawaii. The two of them arrived at the beach, and he parked his dad's car in the parking lot. He grabbed the bag and picnic basket, while Catherine had grabbed her new bought surfboard out of the trunk. They found a place to settle their things at, and a bit remote from other visitors of the beach. Catherine had removed her cover to a new bought bikini. A Navy blue and white striped two-piece, and Steve just stared at her in awe.

"What?" Catherine was confused. Steve had seen her multiple times in very revealing outfits, but that was pretty far back.

"You look beautiful, Cath." Steve said. It was true, his gorgeous girl was standing in front of him, and her skin was glowing from the dark outline of the bikini. She looked amazing to him. Catherine blushed at his remark, and just pushed him slightly.

"I'm just saying!" He put his hands in the air in protest, and winked at her. He grabbed his aviators from the bag, and removed his t-shirt. Now it was Catherine's turn to compliment him.

"You're in pretty tip-top shape, sailor." She said. He smirked at the comment, and walked over to place a kiss on her lips. They stood in the sunlight making out for a few moments, until Steve released for air. "I'm gonna go use the restroom, will you be fine here?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm just going to take a look at the boardwalk shops. Meet me there when you're done?" Steve nodded and placed one last kiss on her cheek. They parted ways, and Catherine grabbed her phone and camera with her just in case. Catherine walked until she reached the boardwalk where everyone was walking around and enjoying this beautiful day in Hawaii. She found a little shop that sold bracelets and little souvenirs and walked over there. She was looking at a Hawaiian custom made braided bracelet, until a guy tapped her on the back. Thinking that it was quick for Steve to find her, she said

"Hey, Ste-" Realizing it wasn't her sailor that tapped her on the back, instead it was a teenage boy that pretty much eye humping her. 'Great, now some high school or college kid is hitting on me,' she thought.

"Hi, pretty lady, can I get your number?" The kid asked. She took a step back, and gave the kid a confused look.

"No." She replied quickly. She wanted the boy to go away, she saw Steve heading into her direction, and wanted to downplay the situation and continue to talk to the young teenager.

"Okay, fine. But there's a huge party that's gonna go down here tonight, mind if you be my date?" He winked at her.

"Sounds fun, but no thanks." Steve was very close to them, and seemed very tense when approaching. The kid slapped her butt, and it made her gasp from the gesture. She was about to reply, when Steve finally arrived, he stood behind the kid, crossed his arms, and tapped him on the back.

"I believe that's something you don't do to a lady, kid." Steve sounded very intimidating. His SEAL tone was in action, and he was ready to punch the kid if he wouldn't go away. The boy turned around and his eyes averted to the tall man that was standing in front of him.

"And who are you? Her brother?" the kid side-remarked.

"No, but I am about to start a fight, if you don't go back to your friends." Steve said. He was very demanding, and if he would result in using his Naval credentials, to make the boy would go away, then he would use those unnecessary actions.

"Riight.. why don't you go back to where you came from." He turned back around to continue to talk to Catherine, but Steve stopped him.

"I think you may be messing with the wrong person, kid. Do you really want to fight a Navy SEAL?" Catherine said to the boy. He was getting on both of their nerves, and Catherine had called the actions that really haven't had to be pulled.

"Yeah, surreee... and I'm the governor's son." the kid said back to her and Steve. Steve had been lucky to bring his Navy ID to access the base at Pearl later. He pulled it out of his pocket, and shoved it in the boy's face. The kid quickly read the piece of plastic that was up closely up in his face, and took steps back away from the couple.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sir. Uh, sorry mam. Okay, uh, please don't hurt me, sir." The kid admitted. He was shaking and stuttering each last word he said to the couple, and quickly ran away. Steve put his arms around Catherine and they walked away back to their spot on shore.

"You really had to bring your ID, Steve?" Catherine said. She looked up at him and her eyebrows had risen in questioning.

"Uh, yeah. After the beach, I'm planning on taking you to Pearl Harbor. I have a friend who's currently based there, and he said he could give us a tour." Steve said. Catherine chuckled at his response, and just shook her head at her sailor's antics.

* * *

_**The Next Morning...**_

They had come from their day's activities from the beach to Naval Base of Pearl Harbor at around 2000. John had prepared all of them dinner, and they ate together in converse of they day's fun fest. Catherine had gotten out of bed, and started to pack her clothes and belongings. Steve was in the shower, and she just woke up. They were to wear their NWU's back home, because they will be heading straight to Coronado's base, and back on duty. She started taking out her clean pair of fatigues, and placed it on the bed. Steve came into the room freshly shaven, clean, and already in uniform. He placed a good morning kiss on Catherine's cheek, and she smiled at him.

"We have to get to the airport at 0800, it's already 0730, Cath. You ready to go?" Steve said. He walked over to his bag, and started to place his clothes back into the duffel.

"Yeah, I'm just gonna take a quick shower, and get cleaned." Steve nodded, and saw her walk out of the door. The both of them had a great time in Hawaii, but now their downtime was over, and were ready to report for duty. Steve took their bags downstairs, and saw his dad waiting for them on the couch.

After Catherine was done in the shower, all of them were set to leave, and ready to head to the airport. The both of them were in uniform, and were at their terminal gate. John had left them at the terminal, and they waited for the announcement that the plane was ready for them. Before leaving, John had said a few final words for them.

"Catherine, it was great meeting you, and I hope to see you soon again." John smiled at the young lady, and she held out her hand for a shake, but he pushed it away, and instead grabbed a hug. Catherine smiled, and patted the man on the back. "It was nice meeting you too, Mr. McGarrett. Hopefully your son keeps me around long enough for me to see you once again." Catherine hinted. John chuckled, and said, "Trust me, he will." He released the hug and winked at her. He walked over to his son who watched the little exchange, and grabbed his old man for a hug.

"Don't let her go, son. I love you and I'll see you soon, alright? " Steve nodded, and released the hug. The announcements came on and their flight was ready to board passengers. Steve and Catherine walked away, and Steve took one last look at his father, and gave him a last wave. Neither of them knowing that this will be the last time John will see his son.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I had lots of fun writing it, so please leave a review and also leave what your favorite part was! I love the absolute positive feedback I've been receiving, it puts a smile on my face every time I get a new review. So, thank you for that!**

**I'm going to Hawaii later this week; my brother's wife recently gave birth last week, and I'm ready to see my new nephew and the new little sailor that's being added into my large family. I hope I can post another chapter this week, but no guarantees! Follow me on twitter to see what I'm up to and spoilers for upcoming chapters :) **

**Twitter: Ltjayedze**

**Mahalo!**

**x**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**Date Started: **2 May 2014

**Date Finished: **9 May 2014

**Author's Note: **I won't discuss the last episode we'll be seeing Steve and Catherine together, but please leave in a review of your thoughts and feelings of 4x21! Sorry for the long wait, had a busy work week, and I went to Hawaii last week (All my pictures are on my twitter: jayeannekylie). I won't blab much, but please do enjoy the chapter! At this point of the story, I'm taking things in a different direction, so watch out for a big change!

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS.

* * *

**Coronado Naval Base, San Diego, California – off base, Catherine's new apartment**

She kept moving around in her bed, and looked at the clock. It was only oh dark hundred, and she could not sleep at all. Steve and her had gotten back from Hawaii the night before, they had a rest day today, and were back to work tomorrow. Her and Steve had spent the downtime lounging around in her new apartment, and finish unpacking things. She had left her room at base, and rented one off base. Catherine was lucky enough that she was placed high in the chain of command in order to get the privilege of living off base. She looked at the ceiling, and decided to make herself a small snack. She turned her head to look at her friend who was deeply snoring. She got out of bed and grabbed Steve's SEAL shirt off the ground and put it on. Catherine placed a kiss on Steve's cheek and left the room. She passed through the small vestibule before reaching the kitchen, and took a look around her new home. Steve and her spent all day trying to put things in the proper place, and they had done a good job with it. It's not like Catherine had a lot of excess decorations, so it took them quicker than expected.

Catherine took a look into the pantry, and took out a package of Ramen noodles, and placed a pot of water onto the stove. She sat back at the kitchen island, and just thought about her recent trip to Hawaii with Steve. She never thought she'd meet John McGarrett, in fact, she was quite scared of meeting Steve's father. Catherine was scared that John might think of her as one of Steve's sleeping buddies or a whore of his. But, she knew Steve. Steve came from a good family, he had a good heart, and was one of the most dedicated guys she has ever known. He had that bad boy persona and strong outside, but if you got to know him, he could open up to you, and you'd get to know the Steve McGarrett. She enjoyed going to Hawaii with Steve, and would love to go back there one day. Maybe, in the future, her and Steve could eventually settle down there, if they had gone farther than what they are now. She visited Pearl Harbor and it's partner – Pearl Hickham, and eventually one day, she'd hoped to be stationed there.

She had a whole future to think of, she graduated from the Academy in 2001, and was fresh meat in the Navy. She had gotten a quick promotion to Lieutenant, and had earned various awards from the time being. Catherine had just only reached her 5 year mark in the military, and she signed on for another nine years. She absolutely loved her job, what she did for her country, and she wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world. Snapped out of her thoughts, she saw the water boiling on the stove, and quickly put the noodles in the pot. She was mixing the noodles, until a deep voice came from behind her, she jumped, and almost dropped the hot fork on her foot.

"Hey, Cath. What are you doing up?" Her friend had come up behind her, and snaked his arms around her torso. She felt that he was shirtless, and had put on a pair of basketball shorts. She nestled into his arms, and kept stirring her noodles.

"I couldn't sleep. I was kind of hungry, and so I decided, why not?" Catherine replied. She felt him nod, and he placed a chaste kiss onto her cheek; left his spot behind her, and went to grab a bottle of beer out of her fridge. She grabbed a bowl and poured her soup into it. She sat back down at the island, with Steve across from her.

"Really? Huh, I'm pretty sure I kept you up especially with our activities, and you're not tired? I find that hard to believe, Catherine." He said. Steve gave her a smirk, and she rolled her eyes. She picked up a noodle and threw it him. He dodged it and chuckled, and Steve put his hands up in surrender.

"You know it's true!" Steve winked. He popped the bottle of beer open, and drunk a few sips quickly. Catherine shook her head at his antics, and continued to enjoy her soup. It was silence for a while, until Steve spoke back up. "So, how'd you like Hawaii?"

"I really enjoyed it, Steve. Thanks for bringing me, even though my dad intervened and told you to bring me along, I hope I wasn't a bother."

"A bother? Absolutely not, Catherine. I loved having you with me, I honestly couldn't enjoy going home without someone like you." She smiled at his confession and blushed. It was like moments like this that she admired the way Steve admits a few things. He wasn't always like that, but whenever he was with her, she noticed that he acts different. She noticed that Steve puts away his bad boy look, and become the sweetest person alive.

"Steve, can I ask you a question?" She almost sounded serious at this point, that Steve noticed the change in mood. He nodded for her to continue. "What are we?"

"What do you mean?" He asked confused. He wasn't grabbing the tail end of her question, and wasn't sure what she meant by it.

"You know...boyfriend...girlfriend...friends with benefits?" She suggested. He picked up on the question and she saw him nod in understanding.

"You're everything, Cath. I may not have asked you officially, but you are more than a friend to me, Lieutenant."

* * *

"Yo! Smooth dog! What's the plan for today?" Steve was looking at his agenda for today's session, until his buddy, and SEAL team member, Ensign Frederick Hart. "I'm not sure, I think we're just gonna wing it!" He called out.

They were currently in the fitness center of the Naval base, and Steve was trying to organize what kind of training he would put his team through today. After Catherine and him had a little chat in the middle of the night, they went back to sleep in good terms. They awoke a few hours later, and the both of them had gotten ready for work. She had logs to do for her own unit, and he also had to do the similar later on. Today, the were just going to do new weapon advancement, and later they would be surprising a certain Lieutenant and her unit. He picked up the checklist of things for the day, and smirked at what he had plan. Being a SEAL was mentally and physically challenging. They are constantly getting sent into various missions, and barely see daylight until it was downtime at base. Other than missions, they were also being constantly trained in everything – new tactics, call of duty, warfare administration, infantry training, they were SEALs during a mission and will always be one until the day they retire.

"Alright! Today, we're just going to do some physical training. No warfare agenda, we'll do that tomorrow. Everyone pick a partner, I'm assigning different paths for everyone to take, but we'll all end up at the same destination. Fastest time will get out of cleaning the brigs of one of the ships that's docked tonight." Steve said as he looked at his team. Everyone had a partner by the time he gave the first set of instructions. Steve explained the rest of the directions for the drill, and went about. Freddie joined Steve in the assignment, and went in their trail.

"So, what's up with you and Lieutenant Rollins?" Freddie asked. Freddie and him were running the three mile and drop ten push up each half mile. He instructed everyone to drop ten at each half mile, and he made sure that _everyone _did it. He trusted his team to do this exercise, if he found out that one of them did not complete the drill, there will be consequences. He would know exactly who and who did not complete the simple task.

"You know, we're still going strong." Steve answered. He smiled whenever Freddie would bring up Catherine into their conversations. It had felt like it was just yesterday Freddie had brought him to that bar. The bar off Annapolis campus that he met Catherine at. Instead, it was almost a decade ago. He met Catherine in 97, and it was now 06. Time had flown by immensely, and Steve wasn't sure if he was liking it.

"You should thanking me." Freddie said.

"And for what exactly should I be thanking you for?"

"I was the one who reeled you to that bar in the first place. When we walked into the bar, your eyes landed on Rollins, and was literally about to take her home." Freddie joked. Steve chuckled at the close memory, and for once, Freddie was right. He should be thanking his buddy for bringing him, because he was in a stable relationship for almost ten years. He and Catherine had first started off as best friends, and soon enough it turned into something else.

"Are you gonna tie the knot anytime soon?" It was a half mile, and the both of them had dropped ten in the middle of their trail. "I can neither confirm or deny that question, Hart." Steve joked. To be honest, it was still a bit early in his and Cath's relationship to be thinking out marriage. Like they both mentioned several times earlier, they had a whole life of their careers waiting for them to explore, they were still fresh in the Navy, even after five years. Catherine was three years younger than Steve, making her twenty four, and he was about to turn twenty seven in a few weeks.

"Alright, McGarrett." Freddie said, putting his arms up in defense. Steve was about ready to throw a rock at his best friend. Was Hart literally asking if he was ready to get married?

"How bout you and Kelly, bubba?" Freddie was a brother to Steve. He was closer to him than to other SEAL team members. He treated Freddie as if he was his little brother, hence – Freddie was younger than him by a year.

"Eh," He flapped his hand, and continued, "We're on and off." He paused, and the both of them picked up their paces. "High school sweethearts turn ex-lovers. She moved to Florida, and the last time I saw her was when I took a quick leave a few months ago." Steve nodded in understanding. He knew Freddie had a hard time dealing with a long distance relationship, and so they were just going with the flow. He felt bad for his brother, knowing that he wasn't able to see his girlfriend as much as before.

-H50-

"I don't understand, daddy. Why would someone do that?" Catherine was doing logs on her computer, until she got a very surprising phone call from her father. Her father had been stationed somewhere else during her trip with Steve to Hawaii. RADM James Rollins was now stationed at the Norfolk Naval Base – the base that was all the way in the east coast.

"_I don't know, sweetie. Her funeral will be in a week, she would love if you came." _Her father informed that her cousin, a former Navy Captain, was murdered in cold blood just a few hours before the said phone call. She was very close to her cousin, and she didn't understand why anyone had reason to kill her. Captain Jennifer Rollins was also a Navy Intelligence Officer; almost half of her father's side of the family had been in Intelligence, and Jennifer was one of them. Jennifer had switched to the Reserve Unit about a year ago, and was apart of the Rhode Island unit. Jennifer was the one who really pushed Catherine into joining the Navy, and even was the one who sent in her application to Annapolis; she had a lot to thank Jennifer for.

"Of course I'd come, dad. She's done a lot for me for years, and I have done the same for her in return. I'll send in a request to my CO tomorrow, and I'll see you in a few days." Catherine was depressed, she had lost one of the closest people she's known. She didn't understand this whole situation, everything was going so good for her until she received the news. Jennifer was supposed to have a big Navy wedding in two months, she could imagine what her fiance was feeling, and how he was grieving.

"_Catherine, sweetie, bring McGarrett with you. Jennifer liked Steve, you even brought her to his graduation! Does he know already?" _Her dad asked. He was right, Jennifer did in fact like Steve. She even told Catherine to keep Steve around because from what Jennifer could tell, he was a keeper.

"I'll try my best, daddy. No, he doesn't know yet, he's training his team right now." Catherine answered all her father's questions. This was going to be hard to break this news to Steve. Steve admired Jennifer, thought of her as an older sister. The both of them had been close when she stayed a few days after his graduation.

"_Alright. I'll see you soon, Catherine. I love you, honey." _

"I love you too, dad." She bid a farewell to her father, and put her cellphone back in her pocket. She wiped the tears off her face and went back into the lab. She was in the unit of technology and was putting in logs when her phone started vibrating in her pocket. She wasn't sure to answer it because whoever was calling her, knew she was at work. Any use of telecommunications were prohibited during the work day, and could be reprimanded by her CO. She glanced at the clock, and realized it was 1300, time for lunch. She grabbed camo jacket, and put it on. Catherine was walking out of the room until a hand grabbed hers. She was about to suckerpunch the grabber, but then she felt the certain feel the person had. She turned around and had a big smile on her face, it was Steve in his SEAL training supplied uniform – green shirt, green camouflage pants, and his combat boots. He looked like he just got back from some intense workout. She gave him a hug, and he smelled fresh; so PT was crossed off her list. "Hey, commander! What are you doing here?" She was happy to see him after the news she's gotten, it was great to have a familiar face around at this time. He returned the hug, and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"Just wanted to see you if you wanted to grab lunch, and it seems like you're willing to?" She nodded, not exactly feeling up to talking. She glanced up at him, and realized he had gotten another haircut. It looked like to her all the boys had gotten a fresh buzz cut, she was liking the hairdo that Steve was sporting. "Nice cut, by the way." She winked up at him. He smiled, and grabbed her hand leading them to the commissary that was across base.

"Steve, I need to talk to you after we grab lunch." Catherine said. She wasn't willing to break the news to him now, he'd be off for the rest of training and she didn't want to break the joyous mood he was carrying right now.

After the both of them had a small lunch, Catherine told Steve. To say the least, he was heartbroken. He was not expecting that kind of news from Catherine. He thought she had some great news, but instead it was the news of the death of her cousin – who almost acted like a sister to the both of them. He took in the information, and just let it settle in his mind. The both of them had said a quick goodbye, and returned to work.

-H50-

It had been a few days since Catherine broke the information to him. VADM Rollins had invited him to the funeral, knowing Jennifer would have wanted him there. The lady had done so much for him, and he didn't know any other way to thank her. Their commanding officers had granted them a two day leave from their allotted special vacation time. The both of them packed a set of clothes and their dress formals. Jennifer would have wanted all the Navy personnel to wear their uniforms. The both of them arrived at Kathleen's and James' apartment in Norfolk in peace. The first day of their stay went by quickly, where they were just de- briefing the recent upbrining. Steve had met most of Catherine's immediate and far family, he just wished it wasn't under thing circumstance.

Funeral day had come, and most of Catherine's family had been in dress uniforms, civilians were in the traditional black clothing. Steve and Catherine walked side by side as they sat in the front where the military personnel had been placed. The Chaplain had asked the officers to rise and salute the fallen member. He read a few lines from the bible, and it was time for the 21 gun salute. They heard the shots, as honor guards were folding the flag to hand to the next of kin.

"This flag is presented on behalf of a grateful nation and the United States Navy as a token of appreciation for your loved one's honorable and faithful service." an honor guard had presented the flag to Jennifer's fiance and next of kin, Matthew. Matthew sat there in silence, he gently grabbed the flag from the honor guard, and placed it on his lap. Steve could tell that Matthew's tears were threatening to fall, but he wouldn't let his guard down. Steve had let a tear fall, and looked over to his friend that was sitting next to him. Catherine was on the verge of crying, Steve took hold of her hand and clutched it tightly, a sign that everything will be okay.

The service had finished, right after they had placed a flag on top of the casket, and lowered it into the burial spot. Catherine took one last glance at her cousin's burial, and just let a few tears run down her face. She didn't know how things went down with her and her cousin's murderer, but she knew that it wasn't an accident. Catherine knew that there was more to this, she just had to figure it out. She will forever remember Jennifer, but she also hoped that one day that the son of a bitch who killed her will be found and sentenced to death.

After dinner with the Rollins family, the two went back to her parents' apartment, and Catherine nestled in Steve's arms for the remainder of the day. The next morning, it was time for them to leave. Kathleen had prepared breakfast for the four of them, and they all enjoyed it. Steve caught up with James, while Catherine had done the same with her mother.

"Steve, take care of my daughter. I trust you. I may not be administering the fleet over there, but I will keep tabs on the both of you." James Rollins took a firm grasp of Steve's hand at the airport as they were bidding goodbyes.

"Of course, sir. You have my promise. No matter what happens between her and I, the promise will still be one of my top priorities. It was nice seeing you again, I just wished it was under better circumstances" Steve nodded.

"I like you, Commander. Don't do anything stupid that will make me not like you anymore." Steve chuckled at his superior's comment. "Duly noted, sir. I'll see you soon?"

"Of course, I'm sure kitten would bring you over more in the future. Is that right, Catherine?" James took a look at her daughter that was standing next to Steve. She blushed at her father's nickname for her, and she nodded.

"Yes, daddy." Catherine walked over to her father, and gave him one last hug. After finishing up all of their goodbyes, the two of them boarded their flight back to Coronado. After arriving in Coronado, Steve and Catherine parted ways, and Steve arrived at his apartment. Putting the key in the lock, he noticed an envelope that was sticking out from under the door. He looked around if anyone may have put it there, but no sight of anyone at all. Opening the door and picking up the envelope, he unsealed the package, and read the contents.

_'Clo alcme hcn tsm ct cxxgaltm. Omlil, Megn gn gt xsttlxmgst hgme dsko usmelo'n agncrrlcoctxl. dsko usmelo'n tsm alca Omlil, Tl xcolykv. g vsil dsk.'_

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**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm sorry if it seemed rush at some points, but I'm trying to get a point out there. Does anyone have a clue on why Jennifer's death was so significant? Does anyone know what the message could mean? This is the start of the arc that will coincide with the upcoming chapters! Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hawaii 5-0 **

**Chasing After You**

**Chapter 9**

**12 May 2014**

**Author's Note:** I received some negative feedback on last week's update, I totally understand, though. I was not pleased with the last chapter, to be quite honest. But, I needed to write that story line in, because you'll see how it plays out in the future chapters. If anyone's wondering, YES; Jennifer's death has something to do with Steve's family.

In the future, I'll be using a lot of Navy/Military Jargon, I'll have meanings of the acronym's for you to understand it better. I feel that if I use the Jargon that I use on a daily basis, it'll make the story more realistic, and because both of the parties are in the Navy.

0 **OPSEC: **Operational Security – used for protection of packages in special ops, missions, and daily Intel work.

0 **NAVCOM: **Navy Command – command central, whoever is directing and assisting Intel on special missions.

0 **NAVCENTRAL:** Pentagon, Washington DC – the military main headquarters (Army, Navy/Marine Corps, Air Force)

0 **MAA: **Master at-Arms – Navy Security Guard, they're like the police officers of the Navy, and they're usually the protection force for ex-military criminals (if convicted of a crime), higher up's, any military official.

0 **JAG: **Judge Advocate General – Military Attorney/Lawyer

0 **DoD: **Department of Defense

0 **LCDR : **Lieutenant Commander – Superior to Ensign, Lieutenant Junior Grade, and Lieutenant for Naval Officers, Subordinate to Commander, Captain, Commodore, and etc.

0 **DEVGRU** Naval Special Warfare DEVelopment GroUp, formerly (and informally still) SEAL Team SIX

0 **SEAL: **SEA, AIR, LAND

0 **COMSEC: **Communications Security – Protection against hackers, and world renown terrorist groups. Used to put protection on technology and instruments that consists of confidential information; telecommunications

More will be used in the future, this is all that is going to be used in this chapter. Also, hope you all enjoy the little suspense that's building on the secret note that was left on the doorstep of Steve's apartment, last chapter. Be aware, Steve and Catherine are going to be arguing in seriousness which resolves in high tensions, a little drama shouldn't hurt that much! Hope you enjoy :)

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS. Also, there is no clearance that Steve was apart of SEAL Team 6, all Navy SEALs are broken up into East and West Coast, my usage for such is only for the sake of fiction. I can neither confirm or deny that I actually know each SEAL team and their skillset handling.

**Episode Reference: **Season 2, Episode 5

* * *

_**Steve's Apartment **_

_**Coronado, CA **_

_**Naval Base **_

_**0900 h **_

"Cath, if you could just please pass this through Intelligence."

"No, I'm sorry. I wish I could help you, but I'm going to get in trouble for this." Catherine answered.

Steve sighed, "At least put it in the back of your mind?"

"Steve, I am not arguing with you any further!" Steve and Catherine had been fighting since the crack of dawn. He asked if he could pass the mysterious letter through Intelligence, but she bluntly refused. He knew that she wouldn't be able to do it, but this was a personal favor. He needed this message to be cracked, he had spent all night trying to figure what it says. Obviously, his time as an Intelligence Technician and Specialist hasn't done him so well, just yet.

"Catherine...I'm sorry. I'm sorry I pushed you." He put his arms up in defense, and showed her that he was very sincere.

"Yeah...look, Steve. I gotta go, I'll see you later, alright?" Catherine gave him a half smile, and placed a kiss on his cheek. She left his apartment, and Steve just fell back into the couch. He was stupid for starting a fight with her. He was angry at himself, he never lost his temper at Catherine, he would be aggravated sometimes, but never would he take his anger out on Catherine. He accidentally blew a fuse, and he grabbed her wrists tightly earlier in the morning. His grip on her wrists were probably so tight that it might have left a few marks. She was taken back, and Steve realized what he had done. _Never _had he been so violent towards a woman, and now he didn't know what she was actually feeling. He mentally slapped himself in the face, and got up to get a cold glass of water.

There wasn't any training today, and his team were free to do anything. This was the perfect time to solve this huge mess he had created. Usually on a day off, he'd sit back and relax, but the only thing on his mind was Catherine. He must find a way to make it up to her. He grabbed his cellphone, and flipped it open. He looked for his buddy's number, Freddie would know what to do. Ever since high school, Steve was never really the romantic type of a guy, he was the screw 'em and leave 'em type of guy. He wasn't really proud of his old ways, but ever since he joined the Navy, he became more maturer and thought more. He no longer spoke before thinking, and he no longer let his anger take over him. Over the years, he had developed PTSD, it was mild, but sometimes he'd find himself shaking or sweating in the middle of the night. The missions he was put into, and the amount of brothers he lost over the years had led to this disorder.

_**Flashback: Operation Strawberry Fields (2005)**_

_Steve was the commanding officer for this operation, and this had been one of the biggest yet for the United States Navy. The goal was to taken down a world renown Mexican drug cartel, and the location was classified. He was called out into prep a month before, that whole month they were training. From warfare tactics, opposing side strategies, gun and artillery training, three teams had been training from the early mornings of oh dark thirty to at least 1800. They would spend days and days going over all of the equipment and skills to make sure the operation was successful. _

_The day before they got called into action, he found out Catherine was going to have a six month deployment on the Big E. He was saddened by the fact that when he came back to Coronado, she wouldn't be there waiting for him like always. At this point in their relationship, they were very used to long deployments and being away from each other for a certain amount of time. Sometimes when he was deployed overseas, he'd try his best to get a working satellite web video chat just to talk to her. They would both have their own ways communicating just for them to hear each others voices. She would always end the conversation with a, 'Be safe, sailor.' and he would respond, 'Always.' They had always been like that, it all started out back in the Academy. _

_Mission day came, and if they were to follow the plan point to point, it would last approximately two weeks to secure the package, and make sure the targets were eliminated. He suggested that the two teams broke up into recon and his team would do the elimination. Both teams arrived at the classified location, and prophesied the HALO jump off the HELOs. To Steve, jumping off planes was a part of the job, but he loved when he was training to do these jumps. He felt alive and free, and by the time they got back onto the ground they'd get the job done. Day five came, and they had half of the package secured, they were just waiting for the best moment to do it. It was broad daylight, and him and Freddie were approximately twenty five yards away from the drug ring. He and him were hidden completely, and were sitting near bushes eating beef-stew flavored MRE's, water from their canteens, and a box of GOJI Berry Bars._

"_McGarrett, I have target one and five on my watch." A voice rang through his radio. _

"_Okay, Hanna, make sure all eyes are on those targets. We are not letting them slip through, alright?" He responded. Sam Hanna was also one of his closest buddies, and were very close when it came to competing back in BUD/S school. _

"_Roger that, commander." Steve left the radio call, and continued to survey the area for any known targets. _

"_So Steve, how are you and Lieutena-" Freddie was cut off by another radio call._

"_10-4, 10-4, MAYDAY. MAYDAY. I REPEAT TARGETS ARE ARMED. ONE DOWN ON TEAM RECON. I REPEAT ONE DOWN." The voice of Sam Hanna had rang through his radio, and the both of them had dropped their food, and got back into combat mode. _

"_Freddie, we need to back them up. The secured targets are armed, and we according to the GPS, we are half a mile away from their location." _

"_We can't just leave them out there, McG. No man is ever left behind, right?" The both of them nodded at the statement, and left their posts to help out the other team. _

"_10-4, the area is full of traps. I repeat the area is full of traps." _

"_Roger that, Lieutenant. We are en route." Him and Freddie had been dodging bullets that were coming their way, and made sure they weren't on any booby traps. They were running through the forest and not even two minutes away from the location were they hearing three bombs go off. _

"_Steve, we need to go that way." Steve nodded, and the both of them were covert enough to sneak into the area where the bombs were going off. They took out three targets that were stupid enough to be unarmed. They were side by side looking for their teammates, and was very wary of their surroundings. Walking into the house, the two cleared it for no suspects, and was not even aware that there were grenades placed in bushes that was waiting to explode. Steve and Freddie had heard the voices of their teammates, and followed where it was leading them. They were very close to the target location, and looked for the packages. _

"_Sam, you guys alright?" Steve ran over to where Sam was trying to compress a wound on their buddy, Demetrius._

"_No, Big D got shot. Three targets escaped, and this is what we resulted in." Steve bent down to check the pulse of Demetrius, and it was very shallow and weak. He tried to compress and hold in all of his tears, because they were only on day five of the mission. This was not supposed to happen, their covert mission was compromised, and now they had to be extremely careful until they caught the rest of the package. He also knew that Big D was not gonna make it. Freddie and a few other guys went to survey a radius of a quarter mile to lock down on any other escapees. Steve grabbed the small first aid kit from his go-bag, and tried to suppress the wound. The wound was way too close to the heart, and Steve tried his best to make sure it stopped bleeding. Being the trained field medic out of all of them, he stitched up the wound as best as he could, and covered it in gauze and medical tape. The wound was covered up, but Big D did not have enough time left. Steve reported in an immediate MEDEVAC, but the fastest time they will be able to arrive without compromising the operation completely was in 10 hours. _

"_STEVE!" Steve turned around at the call of his name, and looked wide eyed. Sam pointed out 3 grenades that were circling about 10 feet away. He didn't have enough time to move, and carry Demetrius, he tried his best to get them into a secure spot, but it was too late. The grenades had already gone off._

"_Steve! Steve! Can you hear me?" He fought his best to open his eyes, but the pain was overbearing._

"Yeah, I remember that. You were unconscious for 2 days." Freddie said. They were sitting in Steve's apartment recalling the failed operation a year ago. Steve remembered it all too clearly, it seemed just like yesterday had they not completed the mission.

"I know, and I l-let, Big D die in my arms." Steve was stuttering and his tears were threatening to fall. He always thought back to that day, if he had noticed the bombs earlier, then maybe, just maybe Demetrius would be alive today. Altogether they lost three SEALs that day, all because the mission was compromised. His nightmares would always end in that day, the day where his brother died in his arms, because he wasn't looking carefully enough at his surroundings. Demetrius left home a wife and a kid, too sad that the kid had never saw his father again

"No, no! McGarrett, you tried your best to get out of that area! You did all you could, alright?" Freddie put a hand on his shoulder, and tried to reassure him that it was not his fault.

"Don't keep blaming yourself for it." Steve nodded, and took another sip from his glass of water. The both of them were recalling certain events, after Steve called Freddie over to hang out on their day off.

"Anyways, how is Rollins holding up?" Freddie asked. Over the past week, Catherine was still grieving the death of Jennifer, and so was he. He still had this aching feeling that her death was not an accident, and that the murderer was really out to get her.

"She's doing okay, she's slowly trying to move on. Her cousin was one of her best friends, you know?"

"Yeah, I could tell. I've never seen Rollins torn about something."

"Her and I sort of got into a fight this morning.."

-H50-

Freddie suggested that Steve should make it up to her by making dinner for her and surprise her in her apartment. Steve thought it was a great idea, and went to the local market to make the only thing he knew how to put together – Spaghetti, and of course the side of salad. He wasn't a cook, but he remembered his Aunt Deb teaching him how to make her special Spaghetti, and thought that he should let Catherine taste it. He picked the lock on Catherine's apartment door and went towards the kitchen. All of the apartments off base, but in area, were about the same, and so Steve wouldn't have to go through so much trouble. He pulled pots and pans from the cabinet, and settled on the pot. He placed water in it to let the noodles boil, and started making the spaghetti sauce. He started preparing the dining table, and lit up two candles, and pulled out champagne from the fridge. The room had dimmed a little, and it looked sort of romantic. He admits that he's not the most sentimental kind of guy, but he knew how to woo a lady over. The spaghetti had finished and he put them in containers and set them on the table. He looked at what he was wearing and didn't really bother to care what he was wearing. His green camouflage pants, a green shirt, and the typical combat boots. _'At least I smell good,' _he thought. What's not to like about two Navy officers in their camouflage uniforms and having dinner? He thought it was pretty hot and it kind of turned him on. He looked at his watch and knew that Catherine would be home in a few minutes. He heard the door lock's being turned, and ran to where she could see him.

"Steve! What are you doing here?" She put down her keys, and was surprised to see her boyfriend in her apartment.

"Well, I'm about to surprise you with a home cooked meal I made, and I know this doesn't make up for my behavior this morning, but I just wanted to say I'm sorry, Lieutenant." He led her to the kitchen, and she unraveled her hair that was currently in a bun. He always loved it when her hair was down, it brought out the features of her face, the things that admired the most about his girlfriend. He pulled the seat for Catherine to sit in, and went on the other side of the table to sit across from her.

"Wow, I've never seen you so romantic." She teased. He gave her a small smile, and opened the platters to the food that was ready for them to eat.

"Well, I have plenty more tricks, Rollins." Steve winked at her, and she prepped her plate scattering the noodles with the spaghetti sauce. She grabbed the first, and he saw her surprised by the taste.

"This is great, Commander. Where'd you learn how to cook?" She asked.

"Remember I told you about my Aunt Deb? Well, when I stayed with her, she taught me and Mary how to cook. This was one of the only things that I remembered, and I decided to let you try it." He gave her a smile, and he saw her blush. She nodded, and took a sip from the glass of champagne.

"I know we left things off pretty bad this morning, I'm sorry, Steve."

"No, Cath. _I _should be the one to be sorry. I pushed you to the edge, and I knew better than that."

"Steve, it's okay. Alright? I know you didn't mean it, you're just on edge since that message was delivered to your apartment."

"Still, it didn't make up for my behavior towards you." He said. He felt really bad, and he was going to ask to see her arms, if his grips had left any mark.

"Cath, can I see your wrists?" She pulled the sleeve of her uniform top up, and showed him her wrists.

"I'm sorry for this, too."

"Like I said Steve, I forgive you. I asked for some healing crème from the infirmary, did you know what they asked me though?" She paused, and then continued, "They asked if anyone was being violent towards me. Or if I was having boy troubles back at home.."

"Catherine, I really am sorry. I will never forgive myself for doing that to you. I never meant to hurt you or make anyone think that I was abusing you or that I was _that _kind of boyfriend." He said. He knew she must have felt embarrassed at the infirmary.

"Steve, I know you will never hurt me intentionally. I'm fine, alright? Let's just enjoy this dinner you prepared, and maybe you can make it up to me in the bedroom, you got it Commander?" She teased him, and he started feeling a certain buddy wake up. He was about to respond, when he was cut off by a knocking on the door. Catherine went up to answer it, and he followed suite. When she answered the door, she looked in the hallway but there was no on here. She looked at the ground, and picked up an envelope that had her name written on it. Steve peaked over her shoulder, and read the contents that was written. The both of them had shocked faces, and none of them could speak a word. The letter had something to do with the message Steve received and the death of her cousin, Jennifer.

_Dun.. dun... dun_

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**Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'd love to read what you thought, so make sure you don't forget to leave a review! Thanks for reading everyone! Look out for more updates and spoilers, and to see what I'm up, and follow me on Twitter: jayeannekylie **

**Mahalo! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Hawaii 5-0**

**Chasing After You**

**21 May 2014**

**Chapter 10**

**Author's Note:**

Thanks so much for waiting so patiently, if any of you follow me on Twitter, you all know that I was recently injured in the right arm. I took a gunshot wound to the bicep, and I ended up getting stitches, the shot was not intentional, and the person who did it apologized for careless actions at the shooting range. I'm fine, I'm healing, but my doctor said to take it easy for the next few weeks. I'll be busy these upcoming weeks, my monthly reserve drill/duty is next weekend, the following week I'll be flying back to Virginia for my sister's high school graduation, and the week after I will be heading to Hawaii once again but for official business, I'll be attending RIMPAC.

So, yes, I'll be quite busy, but I'll make sure to upload new chapters before I dive into my hectic schedule. This chapter is going to pick up on the mysterious meanings behind the letters left for each party. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for reading!

**Disclaimer: **All rights reserved for CBS.

* * *

_**The Morning After... 0700 h – Catherine's Apartment**_

Steve woke up at the sound of her alarm, and saw his girlfriend still slightly asleep in his arms. He needed to wake her up, the both of them had to be back at their bases before 1000. Steve and the rest of his team were ordered to start the training for the new SEAL recruits at the Naval Special Warfare Center, while the actual instructors and chief's were on another tight schedule and asked for them to begin the training.

He lifted his arm and placed his hand on her arm, her back was towards him, and he moved his hand up and down to caress her skin, or in this case – wake her up. She woke up at the gentle touch and she gave him a sleepy smile when she turned around.

"Good morning, Commander.."

"Good morning, Lieutenant.." He smiled back at her, and gave her a light peck on the lips before getting out of bed. The both of them ate the dinner he prepared as a forgiving one, and when they found another letter that was awaiting on the other side of the front door.

"Steve, what are we going to do about these letters?" Catherine asked, she stood up on her arm, and looked at the man who has been by her side for almost a decade.

"I honestly don't know, Cath. I don't know who the hell who pull this kind of stunt, _especially _when we live right around the corner of a military base." Steve got out of bed and started pulling his extra set of BDU clothing out of his go-bag.

"It doesn't make any sense to me. How would these two things connect? As far as I know, there are still people investigating Jennifer's death. And that message? Steve, the one that they sent you is in a secret code. I can't put it through Cryptology knowing how dangerous those waters could be." He could see Catherine stressing about this. He was tired of it too, and it was only two messages, but who knows what could happen next? What else could these people pull?

"Cath, we're gonna figure this out, alright?" He walked over to her and pulled her in for a longing kiss to calm her down, it may not solve anything, but he would make sure none of them would get hurt in the process. When they finished, she gave him another smile, and he winked back at her.

"You know what? I'll see if I could talk to Commander White about this. He's one of the few that I trust the most, and plus he served with my father and yours, I think he would know what to do." Steve suggested. It was true, Joe White was like an uncle to Steve, he was the one to make sure they were in safe hands when his father sent him and Mary to the mainland, after his mother's death. .

"I don't want a whole investigation about this, I don't want it reported to Military Authorities because they could turn this around and it could lead somewhere else." Steve said, he turned to Catherine and she agreed with him. They both knew how the authorities work, and a whole scandal could break and pull the Navy bases into dangerous waters.

"Yeah.." Catherine said. She finally got out of bed and started to get ready for work herself.

"Hey, Cath, come here." She was about to head to the bathroom to take a shower, when he called over. He pulled her into a tight hug that was very reassuring. They wrapped their arms around each other, and Steve kissed her on the cheek.

"Everything's going to be just fine, Catherine." He whispered into her ear, and she nodded into his shoulders. He placed one last kiss on her lips, before he let go of her. He took one last look at her before heading out the door.

"I'll see you later, Lieutenant?"

"You got it, Commander. Be safe!" She called out before he left her apartment. Steve walked out of the apartment building, and head towards his truck. He jumped in and started his decent to the training center where he would be the commanding officer for the new team of recruits.

_**Naval Special Warfare Center – Coronado Base**_

He arrived at the center, and parked his truck. This was the place he trained as a SEAL at, he worked on Base B where commissioned SEALs trained at, the ones who were already assigned a team. He had very fond memories here, meeting Freddie, not only his buddy, but he considered Freddie a brother to him, and the two of the them had been very close since they met at camp. He would be one of the instructors for today along with Freddie, Sam, Ryan, and a few others. This briefly reminded him of the time he was still working at Annapolis. He remembered having to host the Final Physical Exams for the midshipmen and ready-to-be commissioned officers in the Navy. It seemed almost a life time ago where Catherine Rollins was in his group, this was the beginning of their relationship, but they had met before that had even happened.

He turned to the gates where the recruits were staying in barracks, and grabbed his whistle from the chain on his neck. The other 'instructors' were waiting at the beach, where all the recruits would be swimming once they were awake. He walked into the barracks and service platoons, and stood where everyone could hear the sound of the whistle loud and clear. He blew into it and got into commanding mode.

"LET'S GO! LET'S GO! MOVE IT!" He looked at all of the recruits who were running out of the barracks in their mess uniform, and ready to go. They still all looked exhausted, and Steve was not content with the way they currently looked. It wasn't too long ago that he had been in BUD/S, so he knew exactly what the instructors expected. Giving the recruits a set of instructions, they all ran to the beach where they would be doing some swimming. Steve met up with Freddie and the others and divided the 25 recruits into five teams under an instructor. Steve picked his own and they were to be running around Coronado for twenty minutes.

"Hey! I've heard of you!" One of his recruits said, his name being Brandon. Steve turned around to look at the boy who seemed about twenty-three, and gave him a look. Steve didn't reply, but the boy kept talking.

"You're Steve McGarrett! You're a legend in SEAL history. I've read all about you!"

"It's _Commander _McGarrett to you, Seaman Reyes." He used the official tone of voice like an instructor would to his new recruits. Steve even used the term, "Seaman and the recruit's last name."

"Yeah! What are you doing here overseeing SEAL training? Aren't you supposed to be in some top-secret mission killing bad guys?" Steve thought that this was boy was getting on his last nerves, and he was ready to tell him to knock it off, or he would be adding 5 more miles just for him only.

"I can neither confirm or deny that." He said in a firm voice. He honestly did not like when people ask what he does for a living, and when he says SEAL, they expect him to give the full details of an operation.

"Brandon Reyes, would you like to keep talking or would you like me to add more miles onto your run... by _yourself_?" Steve gritted.

"No, sir."

"Good, I'm glad we're on specific terms then." The rest of the run remained silent until they reached the beach.

_**Office of Naval Intelligence – Coronado/San Diego **_

"Hey Lt! Do you wanna grab some lunch?" Her close friend and fellow co-worker, LTJG Savannah Reed, asked her.

"Yeah, sure. Can we go to the grocery store afterward? I wanna make dinner for Steve later." Catherine replied. Sometimes Steve and her would take turns in making dinner, or just like always, they'd rarely make it to dinner. When they both got back from work, it was a habit for them two to skip dinner, and get right into their night festivities.

"How are you and the Commander anyways?" Savannah asked.

"We're smooth sailing. I love him, you know? We rarely admit it to each other, but we know exactly what we feel, even if words aren't exchanged, Sav." The two of them walked out of the building, and were heading to Catherine's car.

"I see, you guys are perfect for each other, when is he going to pop the question, LT?"

"It's too early to say, we're just gonna play it by ear, Savannah. Steve doesn't seem like the guy to settle down on one girl, but he's everything to me. He's not like any other guy, he has trust issues yes, but I still love him more than I already do." Catherine admitted, the both of them arrived at a Panera Bread in downtown Coronado, approximately ten minutes from base. What the both of them didn't know was that a truck was trailing them the whole entire way, and ready to make a move. Catherine and Savannah went into the cafe, and grabbed a bite to eat.

"How's the sex.." Catherine chuckled at her friend's antics. Savannah was truly one of her closest friends, despite the both of them being Navy Officers, Savannah still acted like a teenage girl who wanted the details of her best friend's sex life.

"Really, Savannah?" Catherine questioned.

"What?" She paused, then continued. "Oh, come on! Commander McGarrett is one hell of a guy. And it doesn't help when he's a highly decorated SEAL."

"O-okay.. it doesn't matter if he's a very well decorated officer, or if he's a SEAL! The sex is awesome both ways!" Catherine responded before taking a bite of her sandwhich.

"Mm, okay... that's all you're gonna tell me?"

"I'm going to keep it PG, honey." Savannah Reed was a rank below her, but she was considered a sister to Catherine, no matter how young she was. She was 24 and Savannah was 21, fresh out of Officers Development School.

"So, Steve's birthday is coming soon, what are you going to get him?" Savannah asked. It was almost the end of May and Steve's birthday is in June, June 17th to be correct, and he was was turning 27.

"How'd you know?"

"Freddie told me, you know how big his mouth is." Savannah said nonchalantly.

"I don't know yet, Sav. I'm not sure, it's hard. This is the first time we actually get to spend his birthday together, because all of the other years he was either on a mission or I was on a deployment."

"Yeah, that is kind of difficult. When we get off work on Friday, it's going to be you and I at the mall alright?" Catherine nodded at her friend's comment. She really did not know what she could get for Steve, as said before, this would be their first time celebrating his birthday together. She was unsure if it would be something physical to hold, or _something_ else. Savannah had gone to the restroom before heading out. Reaching into her pocket, Catherine grabbed the keys to open the car, until someone tapped her on the back.

"Hey.. you're Catherine Rollins, right?"

"Yeah, why.." She stretched out. The stranger let out his hand for her to shake, when she almost grabbed it, the man had punched her in the face, and kicked her in the stomach.

_**Back at Naval Special Warfare Center – Coronado 1300 h**_

After a quick water break, Steve got back outside with the rest of the recruits and ordered them to head onto the apparatus that was going to build on their muscle strength; 12 feet tall monkey bars, pull up bars, and other equipment that was all apart of hell week. He and Freddie were heading towards the area, and began to talk all along the way.

"You know what, McGarrett?" Freddie said, turning to look back at him.

"What?"

"Can you believe that this was us almost a decade ago? Complaining about how sore our muscles were after day one, and how much pain was shooting through our bodies!" Freddie said. He was correct, Steve remembered the day exactly when all the recruits were introduced to each other. Some never made it to where Freddie and he were in BUD/S school, Steve was one to convince Freddie to stay, even though he was constantly foolish in training.

"Yeah, I remember saving your ass from ringing that damn bell at the drop area. Chief White was hella pissed at you, bubba."

"I know, I know. I was almost certain I could see the glint of smile that was on Chief's face when he found the both of us fighting near the bell."

"You know how he is. He served with my father and Admiral Rollins, Chief White or now Commander White, is like an uncle to me."

"No wonder.." Freddie replied. Joe White had done a lot for Steve and Mary, and he rarely found a way to repay it to him, Commander White was stationed on the East Coast, overseeing the SEAL teams in that region.

"Well, how are you and Lt. Rollins doing?" Freddie asked.

"I'm sure you just asked me that yesterday, buddy."

"I can't help but ask! You guys are both so adorable." Freddie said, acting like a school girl who was very excited about her crush asking her to prom.

Steve gave him a foolish look, adding to what be, 'what the hell is wrong with you?' look. Steve chuckled and smacked his friend in the arm playfully.

"When am I going to meet her anyways? Whenever I'm at your place, she's either at work or on deployment!"

"Soon, maybe you can come join us for dinner sometime." Steve said, they arrived at the designated area, and saw all of the recruits in line and ready to go. When Steve was about to give the next set of instructions, he was interrupted by an Ensign that was approaching him and calling his name.

"Commander McGarrett!" The young officer ran towards him, and Steve turned around at the call of his name.

"What can I do for you, Ensign Lewis?" Steve asked.

"There's a phone call waiting for you at the front main. I believe it's an emergency, sir." Steve nodded and told Freddie and Sam to proceed while he was gone. The Ensign and him head backs toward the front main and he picked up the phone that was waiting for him.

"Hello?" Steve said.

"Is this Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett?" The voice asked.

"Yes, this is he."

"Okay, this is Captain Dina at San Diego Naval Medical Center. I'm calling you for a Lt. Catherine Rollins, you are listed as her next-of-kin." Steve froze. A bunch of thoughts had started to form in his head, usually a causality officer would inform him, but this was not an accident that had happened on duty. Catherine called and told him that she wouldn't be meeting him for lunch like usual, but would be having lunch with her co-worker.

"Is she okay, Captain? What the hell happened?" Steve didn't mean the vulgar tone, but he was worried and scared for Catherine.

"Commander, I think it's best if you come down here as soon as you could, so I could discuss the incident." Steve sighed, he informed the front main that he will be leaving base and heading to the Navy hospital for his the Lieutenant. He bid the Captain goodbye and hurriedly ran off to his truck on the other side of front main, and head straight to the hospital. On his way, he thought a silent prayer that she would be okay and nothing serious had happened.

* * *

**Okay, what do you think? The drama starts to fully kick in now after this chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it, and I'm very sorry for the long wait! Thanks for reading, and don't forget to leave a review! :)**

**Mahalo**


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